The Secret Life of Tricia Bradshaw
by siophiefandom
Summary: When Tricia Bradshaw transfers to Rosewood High, she immediately makes new friends. But it's not long before her new friends start to wonder: Is there more to Tricia than meets the eye? Paily
1. First Day Jitters

"Hey, Tricia! Tricia!" The voice behind her was becoming more and more insistent. Then, a firm hand landed on her shoulder. "Tricia? - Hi!"

 _Oh, right,_ she remembered. _I'm Tricia._

She had gotten used to the name over the course of countless hours of orientation and thousands of repetitions of it at home with her parents. It was only in times of stress – anger, fear, or nervousness – that she forgot. And, today being her first day of a new school, she was experiencing a little bit of all three of those emotions.

She turned towards the girl with a shy smile. "Hi," the girl repeated confidently. "I'm Spencer."

"Hi, Spencer."

"Hey - that was pretty impressive, the way that you solved that equation."

 _Shit._ She knew the rules. She was supposed to keep a low profile; not attract any attention. If she were branded as a brainiac, people might start probing into her background.

"Thanks." She dipped her head, trying to hide her nervous expression.

"So, I was thinking. You and I should study together sometime!"

"Yeah, um. That would be nice, Spencer."

"Great!"

She diverted to her locker hoping that the conversation was over, but Spencer followed her and stepped to the side to wait as she dialed up the combination. She pulled a slip of paper out of her pocket. She had the combination memorized, but she knew that she would slip up with someone so close, making her nervous.

"So, what's your sport?"

"Excuse me?"

"Well, it's obvious that you're a jock." Spencer nudged her shoulder, smiling genially.

 _Uh oh._ Her defenses went up. Spencer was being a little too friendly. She couldn't risk that.

"Oh, no." Spencer looked confused by this reply. "I mean, I try to keep in shape, but I don't have the coordination that it would take to play sports." Spencer nodded. "Besides," she found herself adding, "I don't really want to be in a locker room full of women. You never know who's watching." When Spencer's eyelids narrowed in disapproval, she realized that she'd gone too far. She quickly tried to correct herself. "Not... not that I'm homophobic, or anything..."

"Funny thing about people who say that." Spencer pulled her books up to her chest as she turned to walk away. "They usually are."

Paige let her head fall against her locker door. She had really blown it. Here, she had a chance to make a new friend at a new school – someone who had been kind enough to reach out to the new kid; someone whom she could have studied with – and she had offended her in the worst possible way.

She didn't even know why she had said what she said. She knew, without doubt, where the thought came from, because she had been that girl; - the girl whom her teammates worried about in the locker room. Ever since Alison DiLaurentis caught her and Shana Fring making out under the bleachers by the pool. They didn't even know that they had been discovered until Alison's snapchat of their make-out session started making the rounds.

When Paige found out that her family was being relocated, even though the circumstances sucked, part of her was excited. It was a chance for a fresh start, swimming with a team where no one would be suspicious of her in the locker room, and none of her teammates' parents would demand separate changing areas. That excitement only lasted until their caseworkers told them that Paige wouldn't be allowed to swim competitively anymore. They couldn't risk having someone see her picture in the paper if she made the national wire services. Paige was an excellent swimmer; there was little doubt that she would make the papers.

In what turned out to be a cruel twist, her family was relocated to Rosewood, home of Rosewood High, with a swim program that was one of Eastern Pennsylvania's perennial powerhouses. Paige begged her father to let her go to another school – one where she wouldn't be tortured by having to be around such great swimmers, constantly wondering whether or not she would have been able to keep up with them. Nick McCullers was insistent, though: Rosewood High had excellent academics, and Paige needed to stay on the honors track; all the more, now that they couldn't count on an athletic scholarship.

Nick and Claire were delighted to find a house with an in-ground pool, because they knew how much Paige loved the water. They were going out of their way to be considerate, because they knew how hard it was for Paige, having to pull up roots and to give up the sport that she loved. Paige genuinely appreciated the gesture, but it was a kind of torture to have a pool and be able to train, when she had no hope of actually competing.

Paige didn't blame her parents. It wasn't their fault, and there was nothing that they could do about it. That didn't make the situation suck any less.

Paige let out a huff of air. She was really dreading the thought of going home. She wasn't in the mood to face the questions about how school had gone and whether or not she had made any friends. So, when she passed a coffee shop on her walk home, she decided that she might as well stop in for a bit, to clear her mind. She texted her mother to let her know that she was okay and that she would be home in about an hour.

* * *

The scent of cappuccino instantly improved Paige's mood. She got a black coffee and found a seat at a booth near the back that seemed to be built for privacy. She pulled her tablet out of her book bag and punched in the WiFi code that was printed on the bottom of her receipt.

"You must be Tricia," a friendly voice said, pulling Paige out of her bubble. She looked up nervously to see the most beautiful creature whom she had ever laid eyes on. Her skin was a golden brown, her features were exotic, and Paige found herself wanting to let down the thick, black hair that was tied at the back of the beauty's head. _Stop that!_ she told herself. Before she could form a word in reply, the beauty spoke again. "Hi - I'm Emily. Spencer told me that there was a new girl in all of her AP classes!"

"That would be I," Paige said, nervously looking anywhere but into Emily's eyes, "and I apologize for anything _else_ that she may have told you."

Emily laughed, tossing her head back slightly as she did. "Why? What else might she have said?"

"Well, let's just say," Paige said with a sigh, "that I didn't make such a great first impression." Emily looked puzzled. "Is Spencer..." Paige paused, leaning a little towards the girl standing next to her and continuing in a whisper, "gay?" Back to her normal voice, she explained, "I made a comment that may have come off as homophobic."

"Ohhhhh!" Emily nodded her head in understanding. "Yeah, that's kind of a hot-button issue for Spencer. But, as far as her orientation," Emily squeezed Paige's shoulder, "you'll have to ask her for yourself."

Emily's smile was making Paige's brain melt. "Well," she said, her voice doing even more damage to Paige's ability to reason, "If you need anything, just give me a yell." She added, "Emily," as if Paige could ever forget that name. As she stepped away, she let her hand fall down to Paige's shoulder blade, where she rubbed a single, gentle circle.

Paige nodded her head to acknowledge what Emily said. Only when Emily was out of her field of view was Paige able to relax her shoulders and exhale. She spent the rest of her time stealing glances at Emily, ducking her head behind her tablet whenever it looked as if Emily was going to turn and look in her direction.

* * *

Emily stepped around the front counter to wipe it down, with her back turned towards Paige, and Paige couldn't take her eyes off of Emily's jeans; - the way that they wiggled back and forth while Emily scrubbed vigorously at what must've been a particularly stubborn stain.

"Her name's Emily," Paige heard from behind her. The voice startled her enough to send her tablet flying out of her hands. "And she doesn't bite," the girl continued, giggling at Paige's guilty reaction to having been caught.

Paige looked up to see a gorgeous blonde standing next to her with a devilish smile on her face.

"We've met," Paige stuttered. She tried desperately to get a grip on her tablet and her composure. Before she could defend herself for the way that she had been caught staring, Hanna was pulling the Louis Vuitton bag off of her shoulder and sitting down, bumping her butt against Paige's to get her to slide over. _By all means, join me,_ Paige thought, amazed at how forward the girl was.

"So, I'm Hanna, and you're?"

"P…" _Oops. Nerves._ Paige caught herself in time. "Tricia," she blurted out.

"Patricia?"

"Just Tricia," Paige said. She was trying to sound casual, but it came out more as a question than a correction. "And I wasn't checking out your friend," she blurted out. "I was just trying to read the label on her jeans. I'm… looking for some jeans." Paige was cringing inside at her lame excuse for what she had obviously been doing.

"Oh. Right. Her... Jeans." Hanna shook her head and smiled in disbelief at the ridiculousness of Paige's cover story. She reached around in her bag and pulled out a wallet. "So, I'm going to go grab a muffin," she announced as she slid out of the booth. "Do you need anything?" Paige shook her head. "Save my seat!" Hanna called out in a sing-song voice as she trotted up to the counter.

Paige wondered how many beautiful women she was going to meet in Rosewood. It didn't surprise her that Spencer, Emily, and Hanna were friends. Back at her old high school, the beautiful women all hung out together. Paige, awkward and ungainly, even though she was an athlete, had never made the cut. She wondered how those girls would react if they could see her now, after her body had come into its own over the summer. Of course, if they ever _did_ see her again, it would be big trouble.

Paige watched as Hanna came up behind Emily, who was now organizing the bins at the front counter, and hugged her from the side. Emily turned to her with a smile, waving her off as she went to pay for her muffin.

"You've got a secret admirer," Hanna said, with a sly grin, nodding her head toward Paige's table. When Paige saw that, she ducked her head behind her tablet.

"Who? Tricia?" Emily laughed, patting Hanna on the shoulder. "Nice try, Hanna, but I don't think so. Apparently, she made some kind of homophobic remark to Spencer."

"Who told you this?"

"Tricia!" Emily pointed to Paige before she realized that she was doing it.

"Well, she's either in the closet or in denial," Hanna said confidently, "because there was nothing homophobic about the way that chick was checking out your booty! She's definitely in a Southern state of mind... if you know what I mean!" Hanna gave Emily a playful smack below the Mason-Dixon Line to make her point. Emily let out a brief gasp in shock at the contact before she giggled blew Hanna a kiss, as if Hanna had been flirting with her.

When Hanna strode back to the booth and settled in, Paige, all the more sheepish because of the interaction that she had observed at the front counter, dipped her head and asked, "Is Emily your… girlfriend?" _As if it's not bad enough that I got caught staring. I got caught staring by her girlfriend!  
_

"Nope!" Hanna said without hesitation. "She's single. Are you?"

"I… uh… well, not that there's anything wrong with it…" Paige heard herself quoting Seinfeld and shook the thought out of her head. "I'm not into… you know. But I'm not a homophobe!"

"Right…" Hanna drew out the word, trying to make sense of Paige. She spoke slowly, trying to piece the puzzle together. "And that's why you said whatever you said to Spencer?" Paige put her head in her hands. She was doing a shitty job of keeping a low profile in her new town. "Hey," Hanna said with genuine concern, rubbing Paige's back. "Don't worry about it. You've just got the first-day jitters. I understand completely. And Spencer will, too. Whatever you said. She's just a little protective over Emily."

"Oh! So Spencer and Emily are…" Paige put two and two together. "Oh, God! Please don't tell her that I was… I mean, not that I actually _was…_ "

"Checking Emily out, I know," Hanna droned sarcastically. "You weren't…" Hanna rolled her eyes at the lie. There was no misunderstanding the look that Paige was giving Emily's butt when Hanna walked in. "And, as I said: Emily's single. She and Spencer aren't together. Emily just had to put up with a lot of shit when she first came out, so Spencer got in the habit of sticking up for her. She's really a great ally – if you ever need one?" Hanna tilted her head and leaned in with a sympathetic look, giving Paige a chance to come clean about the obvious truth. Paige took her head out of her hands and pleaded with her eyes. Hanna threw her hands up, not wanting to push too hard and scare Paige off. "Got it! You're not gay!" It only took Hanna a nanosecond to shift gears. "So, I hear that you're some kind of genius. Do you hire yourself out to do homework for the less academically gifted?" Paige's eyes got as big as Hanna's muffin. "Oh, my gosh, Trish!" Hanna said, grabbing both of Paige's shoulders from behind and pulling her in from the side. "I'm kidding, of course! Damn - we've got to loosen you up, girl!"

* * *

Getting Paige to loosen up didn't take long. Hanna was easy to talk to. They covered the basics: Where Paige was from, why her family moved to Rosewood in the middle of high school; what her parents did for a living.

Paige was relaxed and well-rehearsed, so the answers came easily. She was from a small town in Nebraska. (That was the truth. Her caseworkers knew that it would be too difficult for the family to have to learn an entirely new city well enough to be able to answer questions from the curious.) Her father was a commodities broker (not an accountant), and the position in Philadelphia was too good to pass up, even if it meant that Paige would have to start over in a new school. Her mother was a middle school teacher, and she would be subbing until something permanent opened up.

"Oh - Aria's mom teaches at Rosewood High! You haven't met Aria yet. You two will have a lot to talk about."

 _Great,_ Paige thought. _The clan is even bigger. And they've accepted me as one of their own._ Paige didn't mind having new friends. She just wasn't used to rolling with that sort of crowd.

Hanna was equally forthcoming about her own family, and she filled Paige in on the rest of the girls, too. After a while, she gave Paige's arm a squeeze. "Well, I've got to jet. What's your Instagram?" Hanna made a few punches on her phone.

"Instagram..." Paige hung on the last syllable.

"Don't they have Instagram in the Midwest?"

Paige smacked Hanna on the arm. "Ha ha," she said dryly. " _They_ do. _I_ don't." _Not anymore._

"Okay, well Snapchat? Twitter? Tumblr? Facebook? Pinterest?" Hanna scoffed as Paige kept shaking her head as she rattled off alternatives. "Uh... e-mail?"

" _That_ I have."

"Oh. Okay. I was beginning to think that you just didn't want to be my friend!"

"No, no," Paige assured her. "My parents are just really strict. They check my phone. You know." As Paige started typing Hanna's e-mail address into her phone, she saw the time and noticed how late it was. "Yikes! My Mom's going to be freaking out!"

Hanna stood up, fishing for her keys. "Where do you live? - Do you need a ride?"

Paige reached for her book bag under the table as she explained that it was only a short walk to her house, just up the street.

"Oh!" Hanna exclaimed. "You're the ones who bought that house!" Before Paige could get up, Hanna was sitting down again. "So, you're a swimmer, right? Then you'll definitely be seeing a lot more of Emily! And I _do_ mean _a lot more!_ " she nudged Paige in the ribs and gave her a sly wink.

"What? Wait! Huh?" Paige panicked, her cover blown. "I... um, I'm not a swimmer. I mean, I _swim_ , but I could never..."

"Oh. My bad. I just thought - you bought a house with a pool, and it's obvious that you're a jock, so..."

Paige smiled nervously. "I... I, uh, get that a lot."

"Well, Trish," Hanna said, squeezing Paige's arm, "you should definitely take up swimming. I'm sure that Emily would be only too glad to work with you - in and out of the pool."

"Hanna..." Paige whined, rocking her head back and forth.

"I know, I know," Hanna deadpanned. "You weren't checking her out." Hanna rolled her eyes and shook her head, but she was smiling. This Tricia was going to be a tough nut to crack, but Hanna knew that she would get to her eventually.

* * *

 **A/N - This story is based on a prompt from the insanely talented subway20 (thanks!). Do yourself a favor and check out her stories - in English & français!**


	2. Awkward

Paige was wandering through the open area outside of the cafeteria with her forehead wrinkled up, walking slowly as she scanned for some secluded area to set her tray down and eat lunch. The inside tables were all too crowded, and, even outdoors, she was having a hard time finding a place to sit where she wouldn't have to ask that awkward question, "Is this seat taken?" and get acquainted with some new friends.

After a moment, she heard a friendly shout, "Hey, Tricia!" She looked over to see Hanna standing behind a table, waving her arm back and forth to get her attention. She smiled nervously and headed toward the table. She was even more nervous when she heard Hanna say, "Come join us!"

Whether "us"meant Spencer or Emily, it was going to be awkward.

When Paige reached an open space with a clear view of Hanna's table, she saw neither of those girls. Hanna was sitting with a shorter brunette. Paige breathed a sigh of relief. Just as she turned to head toward the table, she bumped bare shoulders with someone and had to react quickly to keep from dropping her tray.

"Whoopsidaisies!" Emily said, rescuing her own tray with a melodious laugh. "Fancy bumping into you here!" She winked at the play on words.

A warm feeling came over Paige when she realized who it was, but Emily's gentle laugh and corny joke put her somewhat at ease. Paige looked over to Emily with a smile. Emily was smiling, too, but, when she saw Paige's smile, she looked away shyly. Before Paige could figure out what she had done to freak Emily out, Hanna was introducing her to Aria.

"Hanna tells me that you're a Fac Brat, too," Aria said with a smile. Paige gave her a confused look. "Oh, sorry," Aria said. "It must be a Pennsylvania thing. That's what we call teachers' kids - you know - _Faculty_ Brats?"

"Oh, yeah, Fac Brat, all the way" Paige said, pretending that she just hadn't heard what Aria said the first time. She really needed to learn these in-jokes, if people were going to believe that her mother had always been a teacher rather than a software designer.

Once Emily and Paige got to the table, Hanna, who had been spread out from where Aria was sitting, so that they could save the table, scooted down next to Aria on one of the three metal benches that curved around the circular table. Emily took one of the remaining benches, leaving Paige with the choice of sitting on her own personal island or taking the spot next to Emily. She chose her own personal island. She sat closer to Aria's bench, leaving an awkward gap between her seat and Emily's.

"So, where's Spencer?" Hanna asked, and Paige's back straightened up at this new bit of information. Spencer was coming and, one way or another, was going to have to sit next to Paige. Paige prayed internally that there was a fifth friend who could sit between them.

Aria, having noticed the change in Paige's body language, put her hand on Paige's shoulder. "Don't worry," she assured her. "Spencer's not mad."

Paige, hearing this, realized that she would have to be careful about whatever she said. Apparently, these girls did a daily debrief and compared notes.

"Yeah," Hanna agreed. "She understands that you were just nervous."

" _We_ helped her understand," Emily said, looking at Paige with the kind of pity that she might extend to a condemned prisoner.

The girls were trying to make Paige feel more comfortable, but it wasn't really working.

Spencer was lost in thought when she breezed in and sat down next to Paige. "Oh. Hi, Tricia," she said in a monotone, her voice not giving Paige any clue as to what she was feeling. Paige was about to grovel, but before she could, Spencer gave her a pointed look. "Listen – I need to get your number if we're going to study together."

 _So that's how it is_. Paige learned something about Spencer in that moment: Once it's over, it's over. No need to explain or to apologize - just move on. Paige was finally able to relax, but that didn't last long.

"So," Hanna told Aria, "Paige moved into that house up the street from The Brew." She paused for effect. "You know - the one with the pool. Or, as I like to call it, the Emily Trap." Hanna smirked at Paige and quickly moved her legs out of the way before Emily could kick her under the table.

Emily's mouth opened wide in shock, but she couldn't help smiling inside at the cute way that Paige's cheeks were beginning to blush. "Don't pay any attention to her," Emily said, leaning forward to look Paige in the eye. She reached across, in front of Spencer, and squeezed Paige's arm. "I'm the one whom she's trying to embarrass, not you."

Paige took some comfort in Emily's lie, but the blush persisted, although, at this point, she was blushing because of the contact that Emily's hand had made with her bare arm. _Get a grip, McCullers - um, Bradshaw,_ Paige thought, correcting her internal voice.

* * *

"Hey, Tricia?" Emily asked, catching up with Paige after lunch.

"Oh, sorry – I zoned out," Paige said after Emily had to reach for her shoulder to get her attention.

"No – _I'm_ sorry. About what Hanna said." Emily was looking at the ground, for the most part, as they walked, only occasionally daring to look at Paige's face. And never at Paige's eyes. She sighed. "Hanna just likes to embarrass people; put them on the spot, you know? And I'm sorry that she did it to me at your expense."

Paige smiled, and it made Emily melt. "You don't need to apologize," she said in a soft, husky voice, adding, with a shrug "It wasn't a big deal."

Emily giggled in nervous relief.

"So, I heard that you're the captain of the swim team?" Paige wanted to get onto a new, less awkward subject.

Emily nodded. "Where did you hear that?"

"From your biggest cheerleader."

Emily laughed. "Yep. I'm the captain. Rosewood Sharks: Queens of the water!" Emily was playing it down, in hopes that it wouldn't come off as boasting. But she had to admit, she was happy that Hanna had talked up her swimming skills to Paige.

"Well, if you ever need to get some extra laps in," Paige said with a casual shrug, "feel free to stop by."

"Do you swim?"

"Yeah. Not competitively, though." Paige was a little to eager in that denial. "And don't tell me that I look like a swimmer," she added quickly, pointing a preemptive finger at Emily.

Emily shrugged. It was true: Paige did look like a swimmer.

"I love the water and everything," Paige continued, "but... Well, I don't have to tell _you_ : If you're going to swim competitively, you have to start young. And swimming has to be your _life_ , not just a hobby." Paige was speaking from experience.

"It sounds as if you know what you're talking about!"

"Uh... maybe second-hand," Paige begged off. "I knew a lot of swimmers…" She trailed off, realizing that she didn't want to get started down that road. There were too many potential slip-ups. "Anyway," she said quickly as she peeled off to head to her next class, "the offer stands. See ya!"

* * *

After giving it a couple of days, so that she wouldn't look too eager, Emily took Paige up on her offer to get some laps in at her place. Paige was a regular at their lunch table, now, so Emily didn't think that it would be too obvious for her to ask about coming over. She wanted to see the house – and to see Paige, of course – but she also actually did want a chance to work on her stroke away from the pressure of her teammates and Coach Fulton.

"Whoa!" she exclaimed as Paige led her past the gate into the back yard. "I didn't know that it was a full-size pool!"

Paige showed Emily to the pool shed, where she could change.

"Aren't you going to get in the water?"

Paige shook her head. "I don't want to interfere with your practice." Emily nodded and closed the door to the shed.

Paige was trembling at the thought of Emily emerging from the shed in a few minutes in only a towel and her Sharks Speedo. "Get a grip," she told herself out loud. She almost lost it when Emily emerged with a towel wrapped around her hips, and her navel on display in a modest but flattering black bikini. Emily explained that it was team laundry day. She smiled to herself at Paige's not-at-all subtle initial reaction, pleased with her decision to come over on laundry day, so that she would have a credible excuse for bringing her bikini rather than the team's one-piece.

* * *

"Your turns!" Paige said when Emily pulled up to the near edge of the pool to catch her breath. "You got good distance on your initial dive, but you're not staying underwater long enough out of your turns."

Emily did a double-take.

"I used to date a swimmer," Paige explained. "I sat through hours and hours of practice."

"Oh, okay." Emily wanted to ask whether the swimmer was a boy or a girl, but she held her tongue.

"Can you hold your breath a second or two longer?" Emily nodded. "Well, you might try staying underwater for another couple of seconds." Paige said with a shrug.

Emily laughed. "Okay, Coach!"

* * *

Paige had a hard time getting to sleep that night. Whenever she closed her eyes, her brain called up the memory of Emily walking slowly up the steps out of the pool, slipping her index fingers underneath the hem of her bikini bottoms to tug them back into place, then leaning over with a shiver to reach for her towel, and, finally, pulling off her swim cap and shaking out that glorious head of jet-black hair.

As cruel as Paige's conscious mind was, though, it had nothing on her subconscious. In her dream, Emily was much more insistent that Paige join her in the pool. When Emily climbed out, she caught Paige staring at the way that her breasts were heaving as her breath settled back to normal. She strode over to Paige with a devilish smile, leaning over the lounge chair with her hands behind her back, teasingly tugging at the tie of her bikini top. "Isn't there anything that I could do to convince you to get in with me?" she moaned in a low, breathy voice.

Paige smiled. The dream cut immediately to the two of them in the water. Pretty soon, Paige was leaning against the side of the pool, her arms stretched out wide on the pavement surrounding the pool and her head thrown back, while Emily showed her just how long she could stay underwater.

Paige woke up with beads of sweat across her forehead. She felt both a throbbing and her hands between her thighs. She cursed herself for betraying Emily's trust. Emily had come over to get in some extra laps, and Paige's dirty mind had turned it into a tawdry sexual fantasy.

She had known that it was going to be tough, starting over in a new city, but none of the hours of training or the counseling from her caseworkers had prepared her for the likes of Emily Fields.

* * *

 **A/N - So wonderful to hear from those of you whom I know from my other stories! Is it pathetic to admit that I've missed you? :)  
**

 **Welcome, too, to those who are new to my fics. Feel free to PM me and/or leave reviews. Criticism - constructive or otherwise - is always welcome.**

 **Thanks for reading!**


	3. Queens of Denial

**A/N - guest:** ** _Could you please share the original prompt?_**

 **Well, if I shared it at this point, it would be a spoiler. I'm sorry... All will be revealed shortly, though. If you really can't wait, feel free to PM me (here or on twitter/tumblr, where I'm sifado). Thanks for reading...**

* * *

Emily sat down across from Aria at one of the tables outside of the café during her dinner break. She had texted Aria and invited her to take a study break at The Brew, so that they could talk. Aria didn't have to ask what (or, rather who) was on Emily's mind.

Emily smiled, giving Aria's forearm a squeeze, as she sat down. She cleared her throat several times as she took a few tiny nibbles at the ciabatta bread that surrounded her sandwich. Aria smiled to herself. She rarely saw Emily this shy and insecure, but, whenever she did, it was always for the same reason.

"So, how's your love life?" she finally asked, unable to handle the suspense any longer, seeing that no end to Emily's ritual dance of avoidance was in sight.

Emily dropped her sandwich onto her plate and tilted her head. A moment later, she laughed lightheartedly. "Oh, Aria," she lied, "I didn't invite you here to talk about my non-existent love life."

Aria shook her head at Emily's futile attempt to downplay the obvious. Rather than call her on it, she just cut to the chase. "You should just ask her out!"

"Whom?" Emily was committed to her denial. Aria just stared at her, as if saying, "I can't help you until you're willing to admit that you have a problem, Honey." Met with the stony silence from her friend, Emily was forced to continue. "Tricia?" she asked as if puzzled that Aria would even think that, and Aria rolled her eyes. "Tricia isn't even gay!" Emily was trying to convince herself. "Remember the comment that she made to Spencer?"

"Emily, admit it: She's crazy for you. You've seen the way that she always smiles whenever she sees you. And then she dips her head and looks away, as if she's not worthy."

Emily didn't mean to, but she did the exact thing that Aria had just described.

"And admit that you're crazy for her!"

Emily groaned in frustration, then spilled her guts. "I went over there to use her pool yesterday, and all that she wanted to do was coach me in my swimming! She wouldn't even get in the water with me!"

"Wait, she coached you? So, Hanna's right about her being a swimmer?"

"No, she's just... Ugh! It's a long story. Whatever. The point is, I was there, in my bikini, in the water, looking hot, and she didn't even..." Emily trailed off.

"Well, maybe she's as" - Aria wanted to suggest the Paige was as deep in denial as Emily, but she decided to be more tactful " _shy_ as you are. She didn't give any signals?"

Emily smiled shyly and bit on the straw of her iced tea as she remembered the way that Paige had looked at her when she came out of the water. But then she remembered what Paige had said to Spencer.

Emily had seen this type of thing before. When she first came out, some of the girls in the locker room started looking at her differently - as if they were afraid that she was trying to seduce them. And Tricia obviously had issues with lesbians. She must have been staring in amazement and disbelief at how blatant and shameless Emily was being. Emily was cringing inside from embarrassment at having been caught flirting by someone who obviously wasn't interested in being the object of a same-sex crush.

Emily shook her head. "No. No signals." she dropped backwards in her seat in defeat. "Oh, God, Aria! I'm pathetic!" she sighed. "I'm not going to _get_ this girl, so I need to figure out how to _get over_ this girl."

Aria smiled sympathetically and held onto Emily's wrist. She was going to give her a pep talk to try to get her to admit what, to her, seemed so painfully obvious, but that didn't seem appropriate. Emily wasn't at a place where she would be receptive of the truth, even if the truth was the scenario that she had been dreaming about. "Just... don't close that door to your heart just yet, okay?"

"Aria, I'm not going to be _that_ girl - the lesbian who keeps thinking that the straight girl is in love with her."

"I'm not telling you to be that girl, Em. I'm only saying, let's get some more facts, first, okay?"

"So, what? You want me to ask her whether or not she's gay?" Emily scoffed for emphasis at the ridiculousness of the thought.

"You won't have to," Aria insisted. "Just give it a couple of days. You know that Hanna's going ask her sooner or later!" Aria winked, and both of them laughed.

And no more was said about Tricia Bradshaw for the remainder of Emily's break.

* * *

Spencer sighed several times, staring over at Paige, who was bobbing her head up and down, with a goofy smile on her face and her earbuds in as she studied, supposedly, on the couch. She occasionally drummed her pen against her notebook, providing an even greater level of distraction. Spencer rolled her eyes and threw her head back against the loveseat several times, but Paige didn't pick up on any of her over the top gestures of protest. Finally, Spencer walked over and tossed Paige's legs from the couch onto the floor. Paige sprang up, whipping the buds out of her ear.

"Stop it," Spencer said crankily. "It's distracting."

Paige looked at Spencer, confused. "Stop what?"

"This whole charade." Spencer waved her arms in Paige's general area. "Pretending that you're studying. When it's obvious that you're in another world."

"What do you mean?" Paige hadn't realized that she hadn't been studying until Spencer called her on it, but, now that she had been called on it, she knew that she had to deny it.

"You're fidgeting like a burglar in a police line-up. And you're grinning like the cat from _Alice in Wonderland_. And then there's...this!"

Acting on a hunch, Spencer snatched Paige's notebook out of her hands, so fast that Paige couldn't react in time to stop her.

Spencer wasn't surprised to find that there wasn't much in the way notes on the page; just a chapter heading and a series of doodles. And, for some reason, the letters "PM" in block, 3-D print, written over and over. "Oh, my God!" Spencer said in disgust over the sudden realization that Paige had been distracted from studying by a _boy._ "Who's PM?"

Paige panicked. She had gotten in the habit of drawing her initials when she doodled, only her initials weren't "PM" anymore.

"Wait a minute!" Spencer remembered the juvenile habit of writing one's first initial next to one's crush's last initial, to try out the monogram. "Patricia _M_?" she curled up her lip. "Do you have a crush on Hanna?"

"No! No!" Paige repeated the word a few more times as she tried to come up with a cover story. "It's my middle name... Mmm... ". She struggled to think of a name. "Marisa!"

"Patricia Marisa?" Spencer didn't even try to hide her look of disapproval at the way that the two names sounded together. "Oh, no!" She started laughing. "It's a good thing your last name is 'Bradshaw,' and not just 'Shaw!' "

Paige smiled along with Spencer, but with a furrowed brow, because she didn't get it.

"Patricia Marisa Shaw? Your initials would be PMS!"

Paige chuckled weakly, relieved that Spencer's attention had been diverted away from her slip-up. "Yeah," she agreed, "I dodged a bullet!" She added, "Then again - Tricia Bradshaw - you know, TB!"

Spencer shook her head amiably as she came down from her fit of laughter. She sighed, and gave Paige a serious look. "So, do you want to talk?"

Paige felt the panic start to rise again. "Talk? About what?"

"About whatever - or whoever - has got you so distracted."

Paige's panic level started to wane. She had to remember her training: _Don't get paranoid and think that people suspect something. If you act guilty or squirm when people ask questions out of their legitimate curiosity, you will actually make them start to suspect something._

"No!" _Oops. That came out rude._ "I mean, I appreciate it, Spencer, but I'm okay." Spencer raised an eyebrow. "I _was_ distracted... by someone. But I'm good. I'm ready to get serious and study, now."

Spencer stood up, extending her hands toward Paige. Paige took her hands and let Spencer pull her up. Her eyes were questioning what Spencer was up to.

"Come on," Spencer said flatly. She started to do some stretches and breathing exercises. Paige picked up on her intent and followed along. After a few minutes of this, Spencer grabbed their empty water bottles and headed into the kitchen. Paige didn't know whether she was supposed to wait or go with her, so she followed. Spencer tossed the empties into the recycle bin and pulled the refrigerator open. She produced another bottle of water, which she tilted in Paige's direction, with a raise of her eyebrow. Paige nodded, and Spencer extended the bottle to her before she grabbed one for herself. Paige thanked her, and they headed back to their posts in the living room, Spencer with her legs curled under her in her oversized chair, and Paige stretched out on the couch.

It wasn't long before the images of Emily in her black bikini, her golden tan glistening under droplets of water as she shook her hair into place, were knocking at the door of Paige's mind again, but she refused them entry. There was nothing to be gained by dwelling on those thoughts, except the wrath of Spencer. And Paige knew that Emily wasn't into her. It was wrong for her to use her pool as a cheap excuse to sneak peeks at Emily's body - her golden, curvy, toned, perfect little...

Paige tensed up immediately. She sat bolt-upright on the couch and slammed her book shut. As Spencer shot her a "Seriously?" look, she quickly chugged the fresh bottle of water that Spencer had only just handed her, spilling a couple of gulps on her shirt. "I... uh... I think that I'd better get going now, Spencer," she said apologetically as she began gathering up her books.

Spencer didn't bother to ask why. She appreciated the fact that Paige was being considerate and mature enough to step aside and let her study. Part of her wondered whom the initials "PM" really referred to, but she let it go. She had more important things to worry about, like Gideon v. Wainwright.


	4. Paskah Nebraska

After lunch, Hanna jogged up behind Paige and walked with her to class. "So," she said nonchalantly, "I'm onto your little secret!"

Paige stifled a gasp, before she realized that Hanna couldn't possibly know her _real_ secret. "Hanna, if this is about Emily coming over to swim..."

"See? I didn't even have to say what it's about! So why are you denying it?"

"Because it's all in your mind." Paige tapped her finger against Hanna's temple a couple of times. "And why didn't you have to say it? - Because it's all you ever say! It's the only thing that you've been saying ever since I met you!"

"Well, you may be able to fool the other girls, but I'm very emotionally intelligent." Hanna looked over to see how Paige reacted to that. "It's a thing. I was tested for it. Trust me, I pick up on stuff that other people miss. You can't keep anything from me. Not for long!" Hanna dipped her head and gave Paige a knowing look. Paige looked away, afraid that the wrong reaction might be enough for Hanna to decipher, giving Paige's real secret away.

"Hanna, you're crazy. I have nothing to hide!"

"Whatever you say, P...Tricia!" Hanna hugged Paige around the shoulder and gave her a sly smile before she turned to head to her next class.

* * *

"Okay, something's up with _Tricia_ ," Hanna announced to the girls as they settled into their spots around a booth at The Brew.

"Seriously, Hanna?" Spencer scoffed impatiently. "That's why we had to meet?"

"Let me guess," Emily said, stifling a laugh. "She's _gay_!" Emily exclaimed in mock surprise. Hanna rolled her eyes. "I mean, come on, Hanna! Every hot girl you see, you tell me that she's gay and that I should go for it!"

"Oh, please," Hanna snorted. "It's no secret that _Tricia_ is gay. I mean, seriously, your gaydar must be on overload with this chick! No, this is way bigger than that. Example: she doesn't have _any_ social media! Like, who doesn't have Instagram? My grandma has Instagram, and she's been dead for twenty years!"

"Hanna…" Spencer didn't have time for this. She had been having a productive afternoon until Hanna sent out the SOS.

Hanna continued undeterred. "And, when I told her that I was onto her secret, and she panicked for a second, until she thought that it was the gay thing."

"Wait - you actually told her that you think that she's gay?" Emily said in shock.

"I let her believe that that was what I was talking about. I don't want to scare her off before I figure out what's actually going on. And, trust me: There's something huge going with _Tricia_."

"Okay, why do you keep saying her name like that?" Aria was being sincere. Unlike Spencer and Emily, she thought that it was worthwhile to hear Hanna out.

"Because that's not her real name!" Hanna said, as if it should have been obvious. Spencer clicked her tongue, and Emily shook her head, smiling in disbelief. "Guys, come on..." Hanna spread her arms at her side, unable to believe that they couldn't see it. "Look, have you noticed that, sometimes when you say her name, she doesn't respond?"

"Yes," Emily said, patronizingly stretching out the syllable, "like, when she's distracted or busy..."

"You wouldn't get it, Emily! You have a popular name! But Aria, Spencer - you know what it's like when someone says your name - right? - because you don't hear it very often. Whatever you're doing, you look up. Right? Spencer, remember when we used to watch iCarly? You looked up every time someone said Spencer's name." Hanna slammed her hands against the tabletop. "Every. Single. Time." She leaned back, daring them to refute her.

Spencer tilted her head, acknowledging the point. "But Tricia's not an uncommon name!"

"Maybe not compared to your name. But how many Tricia's do you know? It's Pat, nine out of ten times."

"Well, maybe she used to go by Pat?"

"Good point, Aria! And I thought of that. Because, when I first met her, she told me that her name was 'P...Tricia.' So, I'm like, 'Okay, she used to go by Patty, but the kids all used to call her Patty Fatty, so, she slimmed down, she's at a new school, she decided to leave Patty Fatty behind..."

"Hanna!" Spencer whisper-shouted, reminding Hanna that she was doing her speculative and borderline-offensive gossip in a very public place.

"I love how you have to come up with a back-story for every single person you meet," Emily laughed.

"But it didn't hold water." Hanna plunged ahead. "She's just too sketchy. Something's up, and it starts with the name. And it's got to be something huge, because the school's in on it, right, Spencer? She turns in papers under the name, 'Tricia?' "

"Patricia," Spencer said wearily.

Hanna nodded. Then, inspired, she yelled, "Ooh! Maybe she's a rock star! Like Hannah Montana! Maybe she's Paskah Nebraska!" She scanned her friends' faces, and reading only annoyance and skepticism there, she leaned back in the booth, furrowing her brow in thought. "Okay! P-names! Go!"

Hanna pointed and looked first at Aria, then Emily, then Spencer, but nobody was yelling out names that began with "P."

"Guys! This is serious!" Hanna smacked both hands on the table. Then, excited by the idea that had just come to her, she practically yelled, "Ooh! Emily! Introduce her to your mom and see whether or not she twitches when you say, 'This is Pam!'"

"Hanna..."

"Yeah, that would never work. You guys aren't as observant as I am. I'd have to be there." Hanna shook her head in thought. "Okay," she said blithely, "I'm just going to start calling her by names that start with 'P' until she cracks." Hanna's eyes grew wide and she jumped up to her feet, waving at Paige who, as if on cue, had just walked in. "Hey, Pam! Pam!"

Emily gasped and jerked Hanna back to her seat. When Paige walked over, looking confused, Hanna apologized. "Sorry. Brain-fart."

* * *

Over the course of the next week or so, over her friends' objections, Hanna proceeded with Operation What's-Her-Name. Basically, it consisted of sneaking up behind Paige and calling her a name that started with a "P:" Pauline, Priscilla, Penelope, Prudence, Pearl, Peggy, Paris, Piper, Portia. Each time, she played it off as being scatterbrained or as a cute joke. ("You look like a Persia!") When she called her "Parsnip" in middle of the hall at school, Paige had enough. She grabbed Hanna by the shoulders and pushed her all the way down to the ladies' room. Hanna's heels tapped out a staccato beat the entire way as she tried to keep pace.

"Way to overreact, Paskah!"

Paige was fuming. "Okay, Hanna. What's going on?"

Hanna dropped her innocent act. "We both know that your name isn't Tricia, and that your real name starts with a P." Paige didn't react. She knew better than to give anything away. "So, what is it? Patty? Priya? Plumba? Padiddle? "

Paige leaned her head back and groaned in frustration. "Paige! Okay? My name is Paige!"

Hanna pumped her fist in triumph. "Yes! Paige! Wait, Paige? You don't look like a Paige!" Paige resisted the strong urge to strangle her. "Okay, okay! Calm down, _Paige_! So, why all the cloak and dagger?"

"Hanna, it's really none of your business," Paige said through clenched teeth. "I know that we're friends, and I know that you're proud of yourself for getting my secret out, but just leave it, okay?"

"Tricia… _Paige_ , don't you think that you'd feel better if you got it in the open?" Hanna saw Paige's resolve start to crumble. Paige was having a hard time carrying this burden by herself. But she and her family had received counseling about this. She knew to expect the depression and the strong desire to tell someone. When she reached that point, she had to remind herself that there were lives involved, and she had to reach out to her parents and her caseworkers.

"I'm really good at keeping secrets." Hanna was looking up at Paige with puppy-dog eyes. In that moment, something in Paige knew that she could trust Hanna. But, more than that, she reasoned that Hanna could wear her down over the course of another week or so, so, she decided, she might as well get it over with and unburden herself.

"Okay, Hanna." Hanna couldn't help the smile and clap. "But if I tell you…" Paige raised her voice to let Hanna know that it was serious.

"You'll have to kill me?" Hanna was smiling until she saw the dead serious look on Paige's face.

"No. But this _is_ life and death. If you tell _anyone_ , my family won't be safe."

Hanna nodded, worry evident on her face. "Did you kill a kid?" she asked in all seriousness, chewing on her fingernail.

Paige sighed. "Not here." Hanna linked arms and started dragging Paige along. "What are you doing?"

"We're ditching and going to The Brew!"

Paige disentangled their arms and said, without trying to hide her irritation, "We're not ditching! And, besides, there are too many people at The Brew."

"There's a Subway 20 minutes away..."

"Hanna." Paige glared at Hanna, who still couldn't believe that Paige was going to make her wait through the rest of school. "Just come by my house after school tonight."

Hanna groaned but agreed. "Wait - are your parents going to be there?"

"Yeah, but it should be okay. Just play it cool."

"Why don't you come to my place instead? My Mom doesn't get home for hours."

* * *

Hanna picked up Paige and gave her a ride to her house that evening. She grabbed a snack and a couple of bottles of water and led Paige up to her room.

They settled in and Paige told her everything. "My Father was an accountant back in Nebraska. Nothing big, but he had some pretty high-profile clients, and he made a nice name for himself. Well, time went by, and he uncovered something fishy with one of his clients' books. He pointed it out to them in good faith, and they tried to pay him off. When he said that he couldn't do that, they started to threaten him. And my Mom and me. They turned out to be some really nasty folks."

"Mafia?" Hanna asked shyly. She was totally enraptured by this story.

"Something like that. So, my Dad went to the cops - eventually the FBI. You have no idea how brave he was to do that." Hanna reached for a box of tissues and handed it to Paige. When Paige found it difficult to continue, Hanna moved closer to her on the bed and put her arm around her. "Well, to make a long story short, he got them put away for a long time, and we got put in the Witness Protection Program."

Hanna put her hand on Paige's head and pulled it onto her shoulder. "Wow. Your father's a hero," she whispered.

"Yeah, he is," Paige agreed, "but it really sucks." Paige told Hanna how she had to leave all of her friends behind and give up all of the things that she loved - like swimming. The fact that Paige had been a swimmer came as no surprise to Hanna.

"And girls?" Hanna asked tentatively. She didn't know whether _Paige_ had been in the closet the way that _Tricia_ was, and she didn't want to push the girl too far.

"Yeah," Paige scoffed, sitting up. "Nothing that could draw attention, nothing that could get me in the papers."

"Oh!" A light went on in Hanna's brain. "That's why you don't have any social media accounts."

"Nope. Not anymore. Nothing that can be traced. I mean, you've heard of Instagram stalkers? We're talking about _real_ Instagram stalkers."

"Got it!" Hanna said. "Anyway, I don't know about Nebraska, but it's not like that in Rosewood, being gay. Nobody cares. I mean, unless you stage a protest or something and call the press, you don't have to worry about being in the papers."

"But you know how it is. I go to a dance, some parent says something, some backwater newspaper picks it up, and all of a sudden, Boom! My face is on Eyewitness News in Nebraska!"

"Seriously, Tricia, everyone's so over it here. It's not news anymore. I mean, maybe if you and Em were Homecoming Queens someone might want to write a story about it, but, if that happens, I know people. I could make sure you guys don't win."

"Yeah," Paige laughed. "As if I could ever have a shot with Emily!"

"Tri - Paige. Wait, should I call you Paige?"

"Please don't. We can't even use our real names at home. They don't want us to get used to doing it, you know, and then let them slip out."

Hanna nodded. "Anyway, what makes you think that you wouldn't have a shot with Emily?"

"What makes you think that I would?"

"Uh... these!" Hanna pointed to her eyes. "I see that little dance you two always do with each other. I swear, watching you two is like watching two freshmen. _Virgin_ freshmen!"

Paige looked down at her hands in her lap, smiling at the prospect that Hanna might be right.

"Did you leave a girlfriend back in Nebraska?"

"No," Paige said softly, shaking her head. "I mean, we were broken up."

"Don't you think that you should tell Emily?"

Paige stiffened up. "Hanna, I wasn't even supposed to tell you!"

"Not that. Well, not yet, maybe. I meant, tell her how you feel."

Paige looked off to the side and shrugged her shoulders. Hanna linked their arms. "At least tell her that you're out?"

Paige didn't reply. She just kept looking at her hands.

"Well, let's do this," Hanna said as she pulled her legs up and sat cross-legged on the bed. "I'm going to have to tell the girls something. They know that I was on your trail, and, if I say that it was nothing, they'll know that I'm lying, because they know that I would never give up that easily. So, I'll tell them that you had a bad experience with a girl back home - a sheriff's daughter or something, and you guys had to leave town. You had your name changed because you wanted a fresh start. You changed your last name too?"

Paige nodded. "McCullers."

"Well - ew!" Hanna was momentarily distracted by the name. "Stick with Bradshaw, trust me. Very 'Sex in the City.'" Paige dropped her shoulders impatiently. "But, anyway," Hanna said, getting back to the subject. "They don't need to know about that. We'll just tell them that you changed your first name and about the fresh start. Spencer will buy it, because it sounds like a Victorian romance. Aria will buy it because she'll feel empathy for you. And Emily will buy it because, let's face it, Honey, whatever you're selling, Emily's buying!"

Paige dipped her head and shook it with a smile of embarrassment. "And Emily's really _single_?"

"She had one long-term relationship, but it didn't end well. She dated a lot after that, but don't get the wrong idea. Not in a slutty way."

"No, I didn't think that."

"Good."

"Actually, what I was thinking was, _'This_ is the girl I entrusted with my life-or-death secret?' "

"Tricia, believe me. It's nothing that Emily wouldn't tell you herself. Or, that she wouldn't want me to tell you. She'd be too shy and insecure to tell you herself."

"Emily?"

"Trust me, Trish," Hanna pleaded. "You're going to have to step up on this. Emily's not going to come out and chase you."

Paige cringed a little. She knew that she wasn't all that bold and secure herself.

"Don't worry. I'll set it up for you. You'll just have to close the deal."

"Okay." Paige nodded weakly. "I trust you, Hanna. Well, obviously, I guess."

"Thanks. And, honestly, you can trust the rest of the girls, too. I know that you're not allowed, but, just so you know."

* * *

Paige decided to walk home rather than accept Hanna's offer of a ride. She needed the time to think. She was supposed to tell her parents and their caseworker if anyone found out, but she decided that she'd be better off just keeping it quiet and trusting Hanna to do the same.

And she didn't know how she could explain it to her parents if she and Emily started dating. Or how she could explain it to Emily if they had to hide from her parents. She decided that it was too early to start worrying about that - as if Hanna was right; as if there was even a chance of something happening with Emily.

* * *

 **A/N - So, here's the excellent prompt from the very talented author, subway20. I'm pasting it in its entirety because I'm not sure that I can do it justice, but maybe it will inspire one of you authors out there...**

 _Paige McCullers is in the federal witness protection program (with her parents -maybe Nick or Paige's mother were the key witness in a criminal case). So she's the new girl at Rosewood High (let's say, senior year) with a "fake" name (Paige McC. is her real name - because come on, it fits her so well). Nobody knows about her past of course. She's supposed to start a new life and let behind her her former life, which is not easy as you can guess; for instance, she used to be a star swimmer but she had to stop swimming (because of the witness protection program). She meets the other girls, who are really curious about her (and Emily starts to fall for her...no surprise here!). Maybe Spencer (being Spencer!) finds out the truth, but of course she can't tell anyone. But she is Paige's friend, so she finds a way to help her and to tell her she knows._


	5. Hanna Tells All

Once Paige left, Hanna fired off a text to her friends, telling them to come over. They knew that she had met with Paige, so they were all eager to get there.

As soon as everyone was settled in, Hanna stood up, like a lawyer making her case. "Okay. I called you all here to tell you: I was wrong about Tricia." Everyone looked puzzled. "She doesn't have a secret name, and she's not hiding anything. Well, except the gay thing, and she's not really hiding that. Anyway, my point is, we're all going to see her tomorrow at school, so, just to spare her any strange looks and questions, I wanted to get this settled."

Spencer looked at her with narrowed eyes. "My ass!"

"Spencer…"

"Hanna," Emily chimed in, "do you really expect us to believe that you just gave up on this obsession so quickly?"

"Well, you can believe it or not, but it's the truth!"

"What are you trying to hide?" Aria asked, wearing the same expression scrunched expression as Spencer.

Hanna shook her head, playing innocent and kept up the denials for a little while longer. When she felt that she had strung it out long enough to make it believable, she cracked. "Okay – I'll tell you. But you have to be discreet about it, okay?" The girls nodded, assuring her that they would keep the secret. "Tricia's real name is Paige. She got into a thing back in Nebraska with some local politician's daughter, and it was a real mess. That's why her family moved out here."

"So, she changed her name?" Aria wasn't following.

"Apparently, this chick's dad was like a really big deal. You know, 'You'll never work in this town again!' " Hanna wagged her finger and used her most menacing old-man voice as she uttered the threat. "Her dad lost his job, and, when he went looking for a new one, he found out that the guy was threatening anyone who even considered hiring him. So, to make a long story even longer, her dad managed to find something out here, small town, millions of miles away, where nobody knew him. But I guess this guy has connections all over, and her dad was afraid that he'd track them down eventually and hassle him some more."

"So that's why Tricia's not on any social media." Aria deduced.

"Bingo!" Hanna confirmed. Aria smiled at having made the connection.

Spencer was still scrunching her face in that deep-in-thought-Spencer way. "This seems like a bit of an over-reaction, doesn't it?"

"You know those backwater politicians, Spencer. It's all about honor and the family name. He wanted to make sure that no one was foolish enough to do something like that again. Anyway, Tricia's mom always told her that she had wanted to name her Patricia, and call her 'Tricia,' when she was born, but they ended up naming her after a grandmother, or something. So, they got a do-over, and now she's Tricia."

"What's her middle name?" Spencer challenged. Hanna shrugged. She was too good at this game to try to come up with some fake name that she would have to coordinate with Paige later.

Spencer nodded, satisfied with the anser. Paige hadn't fooled her with "Patricia Marisa." If Hanna was lying about Paige, at least she was a better liar.

In the end, Hanna was pretty convincing, and, as she suspected, each of the girls, for her own reason, wanted to believe her. "She asked me not to say anything, but I told her that you guys would get it out of me, and I told her that you wouldn't tell anybody, so, _please_ – you can't say a word to _anyone_ , okay? Or she's never going to trust me again."

"And her dad could lose his job again." When Aria pointed that out, Emily, who had been sitting trance-like throughout the discussion, flinched a little. She was just getting to know Paige. She didn't want her to have to move away again.

"Right," Hanna agreed. "So… mum's the word?"

Spencer and Aria assured her that they wouldn't tell anyone. Emily was silent, sitting with her arms folded and her head down in thought. Hanna called her out. "Emily?"

"Huh? What?" She quickly snapped back into the present. "So, Tricia really _is_ gay?" Emily was trying to sound nonchalant, but her eyes were giving her away.

"Ugh. Yes, Emily. Is that really all that you took from this? If you could just get over your lady-crush for a minute and pay attention."

Emily smiled innocently. "What? I'm just wondering. I don't think about Tricia that way!"

"Oh, my bad." Hanna tilted her head back and started sniffing the air. "What's that smell?"

" _Hanna_ ," Emily pleaded.

"No, seriously, Em!" Hanna put her hand on Emily's arm to silence her and sniffed the air some more. "You guys don't smell that?" Spencer and Aria smiled at Emily, shaking their heads sympathetically at the whole ritual that she would have to endure. "It smells like… like…" Hanna slammed her hands down on her knees for dramatic effect. "Emily and Denial!"

* * *

The next day, at lunch , Aria gave Paige a long hug. Spencer clapped her on the back and nodded firmly, as if telling Paige that she had her back. Hanna winked with a smile, silently asserting that Paige was right to have trusted her: Everything had worked out fine.

Emily was being weird.

She smiled as soon as Paige came to the table, but, then, she turned her attention to her sandwich for pretty much the rest of the lunch period. Paige looked over at her a couple of times, to make sure that she was okay, but, each time she did, Emily just looked away quickly. Paige had never seen Emily like that before, but she tried not to let it worry her too much.

* * *

The next morning, Paige stopped by The Brew, in what had become her regular Saturday routine. It was a good place to study, and, since the swim meets hadn't started yet, Emily was usually there working. Paige was happy to see her. She strode up to the counter with a big smile on her face.

Emily was still acting weird. She smiled at Paige but immediately looked down at the counter which needed to be wiped down, all of a sudden. She was biting the corner of her lip, still sort of smiling, and twisting back and forth, in what looked like a slow-motion impression of the inside of a washing machine.

Anyone else would've recognized the fact that Emily was acting like that because of Paige. Paige, though, was just confused. "Hey, is everything okay?" she asked.

Emily nodded, then shrugged her shoulders. She bit her lip and started moving her index finger slowly back and forth across the counter, following it with her eyes.

"O… kay." Paige said, still not sure what was going on. "So, could I get a black coffee, please?" When Emily served it up for her, Paige raised the cup in thanks and started to walk away.

"Tricia!" Emily called out quickly, needing to get Paige to stop. Paige turned around, and Emily asked, "Is it all right if I come after you in the pool?" Paige's head snapped back. She tried hard to figure out what that meant. "Oh God!" Emily shouted, hiding her face in her hands. "Is it okay if I come by after work? To use your pool?" She was speaking slowly, to avoid another mash-up.

"Of course!" Paige gave Emily a big smile, and they both stood in their spots for a few awkward moments.

Emily turned her shoulder toward the door to the kitchen, pointing in that direction. "Well, I should, um… You know…" She ducked into the kitchen and buried her face in her hands again. "Oh fuck!" she said out loud, but not loud enough for anyone else to hear. "Emily Fields, you have got absolutely _zero_ game!"

* * *

Paige gave up on her plans to study. She gulped down her coffee and bagel and, after a quick good-bye to Emily, rushed home to call Hanna.

"What did you tell them?" she demanded as soon as Hanna picked up.

"I told them what we talked about: You're gay, and you had to leave town."

"What else?" Paige's impatience was caused by fear, not anger.

"Tricia, where is this coming from?"

"Emily!"

"What about Emily?"

"She's been acting strange. As if she _knows_ something!"

"Look, Trish, I swear that I didn't tell them anything. What do you mean, she's acting weird?"

"I don't know… She can't even look at me. She didn't say a word to me at lunch yesterday. And she's always smiling, as if she knows some kind of secret about me that she's not supposed to know! And I can't believe that you told her – you _know_ what could happen!"

Hanna couldn't help laughing a little. "And you really think that this is all because I told her your secret?"

"Hanna!"

"Tricia!" Hanna mocked Paige's tone of voice. "You can't honestly be this clueless!"

"Well, then clue me in, please, because I'm about to lose my mind." _Maybe my life._

"Emily has a crush on you, Trish. She's had a crush on you since she first laid eyes on you. And, up till now, she could _pretend_ that nothing could ever come of it, because she could _pretend_ that you weren't into girls. But, now that she knows different, she has to face her real feelings about you. And the fact that you might return them. And that makes her nervous and shy around you. God, haven't you ever had anyone fall for you before?"

"I don't know. Maybe? I guess? I… Really? You think that's what it is?"

"Trust me, Trish."

" _She's_ nervous because of _me_?" Paige started hyperventilating, chanting "Oh, shit!" over and over.

"Tricia… Paige! Calm down!" Hanna heard Paige try to control her breathing on the other end of the phone call. "What's going on? Talk to me…"

"I told Emily that she could come over and use the pool this afternoon."

"So? That's great!"

"No, it's not, Hanna! What am I supposed to do if she shows up?"

Hanna groaned into her phone. "Just be yourself. And let her know how you feel. It's the only way that either one of you is going to be able to relax."

"Tell her how I feel?"

"I'm not saying pledge your undying love, or anything. Just tell her that she looks nice and that you're glad that she came by and… Oh, God. Why do I feel as if I'm back in middle school again? Do you want me to come over, too?

Paige rolled her eyes. "No, Hanna. I don't need you to come over and hold my hand like my mommy. Just, you know, talk me down."

"It'll be _fine_ , Tricia," Hanna said patiently. Paige almost started to believe it, until Hanna continued. "But be sure that you get into the pool this time." As soon as she heard those words, Paige's brain called up the memory of the dream that she had after the last time that Emily stopped by her pool. She started hyperventilating again. "Tricia? What the hell's going on over there?"

"Nothing. Nothing. I'm fine." Paige exhaled several times.

"I'm just saying. Emily felt uncomfortable swimming by herself the last time, okay? I'm not saying make a move on her or anything. Just don't make her feel so exposed."

Paige took a few more deep breaths. "Okay. Okay." _I can do this._

"It's really going to be fine, Tricia. I swear."


	6. Meet the Parents

"Well, hello!" the tall slender woman said as she opened the door. She reminded Emily of Tricia in many ways, but there was more confidence behind her smile. "You must be Emily."

"Yes, Ms. Bradshaw. I'm very pleased to meet you."

"Well, I'm pleased to meet you, too, Emily. I'd be even more pleased if you called me Christy!" Emily nodded her head slightly and repeated the name to herself. "I understand that you're here to get some laps in?"

"Yes," Emily said, fidgeting with the zipper on her warm up suit. "If… if that's okay."

"Absolutely," Claire McCullers said. "You're welcome any time. Even if Patricia isn't at home, okay?"

"Okay," Emily said with a smile, knowing that she would never take Claire up on her offer to come by when Paige wasn't there.

Claire showed her to the back door, where Paige was already doing laps. Emily crouched at the side of the pool, watching Paige's form with admiration. She obviously knew her way around a pool. If she didn't swim competitively, she should.

When Paige noticed Emily, she pulled up, wiping her hand over her face, and swam to the side of the pool. She quickly hoisted herself out of the water and, not bothering to dry off, sat next to Emily, putting her feet in the water. Emily pulled up the pants legs on her warm up suit and sat next to Paige with her feet in the water, lazily dragging her right foot, the one that was farthest from Paige, back and forth under the surface.

"You've got great form!" Emily said with a broad smile, not daring to look at Paige. "Are you sure that you never swam competitively?"

Paige was ready for this question. "Nope. I took a couple of lifeguarding courses, and they were really anal about getting the strokes down pat. You know. Life or death in an emergency. It had to be second nature."

"Well, you're really good," Emily said. She was more relaxed, since Paige was in her swimsuit. She didn't feel as conspicuous as she did the first time, when she was the only one in swimwear. Speaking of which, she realized that she was still in her warm-ups. She pulled the jacket off and laid it next to her, shaking her head and lifting her arms to gather her hair into a ponytail. She smiled, a bit confused, when she caught Paige staring at her outstretched and newly exposed torso.

"Sorry," Paige said shyly. "You're beautiful."

Emily's smile stretched wider. Putting her hand on Paige's shoulder, she said, "So are you," softly, and looked away. After an awkward silence, she tucked her hand back into her lap. "I guess you hear that all the time."

"Not really," Paige said, "I was always the skinny, awkward kid, you know? Gangly, is that the word?"

Emily smiled at the thought of a younger, awkward Paige. "Now, that, I would love to see. But, of course, you're not on Instagram, so I can't stalk your old pictures!" She glanced over at Paige just in time to see a slight cringe. "Oh. I'm so sorry, Tricia. I forgot. Hanna explained why you can't be on social media."

"Yeah," Paige said with a reassuring smile. "But don't worry: My Mom has a lot of embarrassing old pictures that I'm sure she'd love to use against me!"

Emily stared at the mini waves that her foot was making in the water, occasionally reaching up to check that her hair was still in place. "So," Paige said after a while, "are we getting in the pool today, or what?"

Emily smiled, leaning on Paige's shoulder for support as she stood up. Paige jumped into the water, surfacing just in time to see Emily fold up her warm up suit and set it on one of the chairs. She was smiling when she turned around, and, with the sun behind her creating a halo, she looked positively angelic.

"So, are you going to help with my turns some more, Coach Bradshaw?" Emily teased, adding quickly, "Just kidding. I just came over to hang out." Something within Paige warmed at the thought that Emily Fields had invited herself over just to hang out with her.

* * *

After a half hour or so of horseplay in the pool, the two started to relax around each other. Emily found herself worrying less and less about whether or not Paige might like her, and just enjoying being with her, having fun and being dorks in the water. Paige was trying to show Emily that she could do a handstand under the water, so Emily snuck up behind her and pushed on her leg, causing her to tumble over. Paige retaliated by grabbing Emily around the waist and pulling her under the water with her. The move took Emily by surprise, and she swallowed some water. She came up sputtering and coughing.

Paige panicked. She patted Emily's back over and over, asking whether or not she was okay. Emily put her hand up, both to signal that she was okay and to get Paige to stop smacking her on the back. Once she had coughed up all of the water, she wiped her face with the palms of her hands a couple of times and managed a smile. "Good one, Bradshaw! You got me!"

Paige was cringing at what she had done. "Maybe we should take a break from the water for a while?" Emily nodded. She didn't want Paige to treat her like a fragile piece of porcelain, so, as they climbed out of the pool, she intentionally backed into Paige, sending her crashing backwards into the water. Paige made a weak attempt to splash Emily, and Emily obligingly squealed, hoping that all of the awkwardness was behind them.

They lay on the pool chairs, enjoying the late-summer sun and each other's company.

"So, how do you like studying with Spencer?"

"It's all right." Paige shrugged. After a moment's thought, she said, "It's not really studying together, though. It's more like studying in the same room together. I'm not really sure why she even invited me."

"That sounds like Spencer! I think that she just figured you for the kind of person who wouldn't distract her by talking or by asking her a million questions."

"Then why not just study alone?"

Emily shrugged. "Spencer doesn't really like to be alone, you know? I mean, don't you think that good company makes everything better?"

"Well, it certainly makes swimming better!"

"Thanks," Emily said, smiling to herself.

Paige sat up. She needed a little distance, so that she could compose herself. This subtle flirtation was getting her a little worked up. She decided to make a refrigerator-run. "Are you thirsty? Do you want some water or anything?"

"No thanks," Emily said. "I think that I've had enough water for today." Paige smiled, because Emily was smiling, but when she realized what Emily was talking about, she dipped her head, looking guilty.

"Aw, come on, Tricia! I'm _kidding_ , obviously _!_ " Paige shook her head. "It's fine, Tricia. I'm fine."

"It's not fine," Paige said into her towel. "I could've drowned you."

"Oh, don't be so melodramatic," Emily said. She sat up in her chair, reached a hand under Paige's chin, and, when Paige still didn't stop sulking, she gave her a kiss on the cheek. That put the smile back onto Paige's face, although it didn't get her to lift her head up.

* * *

Paige wasn't the only one who was moved by Emily's kiss. From the kitchen window, Claire McCullers saw it, too. It set up the topic of conversation for that evening's meal.

Nick and Claire McCullers knew about Emily. Paige had never been secretive with them about her relationships, even before it became a question of life or death. Paige had never told them about any romantic possibilities with Emily, though. The fact was, Paige wasn't really aware of any such possibilities, despite what she hoped.

* * *

"So, tell us more about Emily," Claire invited Paige, with a pleasant lilt in her voice.

Paige shrugged. She didn't know what to tell them that they didn't already know. "She just wanted to come by and use the pool for a bit. You know how it is when you're competing. You can never get too many laps in." Claire rubbed her daughter's shoulder. There wasn't any regret in Paige's tone when she said that, but Claire knew how difficult it was for her daughter to give up the sport that had been her passion.

"Is there anything going on?" Nick asked cutting to the chase. "Anything that we would be obligated to report?" he prompted

Paige dropped her silverware onto her plate, annoyed. "No, Dad." Paige really wasn't in the mood to do this. As if relationships weren't hard enough. As if it weren't hard enough to try to gauge what someone else is feeling about you, and put your feelings on the line. It was bad enough to have your parents over-analzye every little word and gesture, but to have to get the caseworkers involved?

"Tricia, I know that this might not seem fair, but you know why we have to ask."

Paige just shook her head, scowling. "May I please be excused?" she asked through gritted teeth.

Claire scowled at her husband. She turned towards her daughter with a much softer expression. "Well, she seems like a lovely young lady, Tricia. I hope that we'll be seeing some more of her."

"Yeah," her dad said, smiling slightly. "Tricia, we're not saying that you shouldn't be able to date. We're just reminding you that you need to be careful. And you need to remember to keep us informed."

"All right. God, Dad, I've got it, okay?"

"Your mother and I were young once, you know. We know what you're going through. "

This was too much for Paige. "Really?" she said, louder than she had intended. She didn't regret her tone or dial it back, though. "You really know what I'm going through?" She stood up and pushed her chair away from the table. "You know what it's like when your parents can't even call you by your real name? You know what it's like to change schools right before your senior year, the year when you're supposed to be team captain and lead the team to the state championships? You know what it's like to realize that it doesn't matter how good you are – your Olympic dreams are never going to come true?"

"This hasn't been easy on any of us, Tricia."

When Nick raised his voice, Claire stood up and put her hand in front of his face. "That's enough, Chester." She pulled Paige in for a hug. "You're right, _Paige._ Your father and I can't possibly know what all of that is like. None of us chose this situation, and we're all struggling to make the best of it. Now, we know that you're responsible, and we know that you know what the stakes are here. But you understand why we have to ask, don't you?"

Paige nodded into her mother's shoulder. "I'm sorry," she said softly.

"I'm sorry too, Tricia." Nick said. He walked over and put his arm around Paige's shoulder. "Let's all sit down and enjoy this lovely dinner that I worked so hard on."

Paige laughed at that statement. "Your fingers must be killing you from typing in your credit card number and the delivery address."

Nick kissed his daughter and his wife on the cheek. "There's nothing I wouldn't do to take care of my ladies!" Everyone took a seat, and the subject of caseworkers was dropped.


	7. Can You Trust a Liar?

Emily invited Aria over to study with her on Sunday morning. They both knew that not much studying would be involved. There never was, when the two of them got together.

Emily wanted Aria to help ground her. She was nervous about seeing Paige again on Monday. Objectively, things had gone okay: Paige complimented her looks and said that she was glad that Emily was there, and they had fun together. On the other hand, Emily had invited herself over, and she had kissed Paige on the cheek, but Paige didn't make any overtures toward her. Either Paige was really shy, or really clueless, or really not interested.

Aria told Emily just to be patient, and, for the moment, to concentrate only on being friends with Paige. She knew that Emily wanted more, but being awkward, lovestruck, and desperate around Paige wasn't going to help her with Paige. If they were meant to be, things would work out, and, if not, they could at least develop a deep friendship.

Emily was glad for her friend's advice. She was able to relax and actually study for a while, before her stomach started complaining. As she and Aria were discussing what their lunch options were, Emily's phone lit up. When she checked who it was, her face lit up, too.

"Tricia?"

Emily nodded and pointed the phone toward Aria, so that she could see the text:

 **TriciaB: Feel like a picnic?**

Aria started grabbing her things. "Well, go! Scoot! I'll be fine!"

As she started loading up her backpack, Emily grabbed her arm. "Aria! Help me! What do I wear?"

Emily texted Paige back that she would be ready in twenty minutes. She and Aria spent the first fifteen coming up with an outfit that looked simple and spontaneous, and getting her make-up and hair to look as if Emily had awakened looking that good. Aria gave her a hug and a pat on the back and slipped out of the back door before Paige knocked at the front door.

* * *

Paige took Emily to a secluded spot not far from the lake, where there was nothing but the trees to keep them company. She set out some sandwiches, chips and bottles of water, and she and Emily sat with their legs crossed, facing each other, talking about school, life, and family. Emily was having fun.

When they had finished eating, they lay down on the blanket and looked up at the clouds. Paige broke the silence with a soft, apprehensive voice. "Emily?"

Emily turned to look at her, smiling to help put her at ease.

"Even though the circumstances weren't the best, I'm really glad that my family came to Rosewood. I'm glad that I got to know you. And your friends. Your friends are great, but, mostly, you."

"Thanks," Emily said, with that angelic, almost-shy giggle, and she stroked Paige's arm.

Paige sighed. "But, here's the thing, Emily."

Emily sighed in return. "Why does there have to be a thing, Tricia?"

Paige sat up on her elbows. "Because life sucks, and it's not fair, and I don't even know how to tell you this."

Emily sat up, too. The casual ease of their lazy Sunday afternoon was totally lost, at that point. "Tell me what?"

Paige couldn't look at Emily as she spoke. "Emily, I really like you. _Really_ like you. But, it's just, after what happened back in Nebraska, my parents are being really weird and overprotective."

"They want to protect you from me?" Emily was trying not to sound as offended as she felt.

"Okay, that's not the right word. But, the thing is, my parents and I kind of had an uneasy understanding about my sexuality. And after things went south with Shana, it was kind of like I-Told-You-So, you know? So, after you left yesterday, they gave me the third degree over dinner."

Paige didn't like lying. Especially not to someone with whom she wanted to start a relationship. And especially at the expense of her parents, who had long since come to terms with her sexuality.

"I'm sorry, Trish." Emily really was. She didn't want to be a problem for Paige, but she didn't like where the conversation was heading.

"It's not your fault," Paige said. "The thing is…"

"What are you getting at, Tricia?" Emily could only imagine a couple of scenarios, and she didn't like either of them.

"If we were to… start… seeing each other… we would kind of have to… keep it from my parents."

Emily stood up, turning her back to Paige.

"Emily, this isn't what I want, okay? And you deserve better, okay? I know that. It's just…"

"I know what it is, Tricia." Emily didn't want to be mad at Paige, but she couldn't help it. "And I don't blame you. I just don't know if I can go back to hiding who I am."

Paige stood up and put her hands on Emily's shoulders. She was relieved when Emily didn't pull away. Emily actually relaxed them, a little, under Paige's touch. "Emily, I'm not asking you to hide who you are. I'm only asking for _us_ to hide what we are from my parents. I'm not going to pretend to be straight, and I don't want you to pretend that you are, either. And I don't want to hide from your friends or the school, or even _your_ family. Just from my parents. Would that be okay?"

Emily turned around to look at Paige, whose eyes were pleading. Emily's eyes were pleading, too. She really didn't want to do this. "Please?" Paige begged. "I don't like lying to my parents, either, but, haven't you ever had something that you had to keep secret from your parents?"

Emily's body slumped as she thought about Aria, who had dated her English teacher, Ezra Fitz, and it helped her understand what Paige was asking her to do. And, after all, this secret with Paige was nowhere near as grave as what had been going on between Aria and Ezra. No one could end up in jail or lose his job over it. "I don't like it," she said with a sigh, "but I guess I understand," she said.

Paige allowed herself to smile. "I promise, Emily, this isn't forever. My parents will come around eventually." Emily nodded, scowling slightly and shaking her head. "So you're okay with this?" Paige pleaded.

"I suppose."

"Seal it with a kiss?"

Emily laughed at the unexpectedness of the question. "Come here," she sighed.

Paige leaned in, brushed the hair away from Emily's face, and gave her a gentle kiss. Emily giggled. "Did you just kiss my dimple?"

Paige, with her hand still in Emily's hair behind her neck, tweaked the dimple with her thumb. "I love your dimples," she whispered, as she leaned in to kiss the other one. Emily turned her head, though, capturing Paige's lips instead.

"I can't believe that our first kiss was you kissing my dimple!"

Paige shook her head. "Our first kiss was yesterday, at my pool." Without realizing that she was doing it, she reached her hand to the spot where Emily's lips had contacted her cheek.

Emily looked down with a shy laugh. "But we weren't together then."

"It still counts!" Paige said, smiling because Emily had implied that they were together.

* * *

"So, you guys are official now?"

"I guess," Emily replied with a shrug. She was trying to play it down, but her persistent smile was giving her away. Hanna squeezed her hands, smiling back at her.

"There's just one thing," Emily said, wrinkling her eyebrows.

"No," Hanna interrupted. "There's no thing. Just let yourself enjoy this, okay, Em?"

"I _am_ , Hanna. It's just that..." Emily paused for a second before she got the words out. Leaning across the table, she whispered, "Is this bad? She wants us to hide it from her parents."

"Huh!" Hanna had a pretty good idea why Paige wanted to hide, but she wasn't giving anything away. "That's weird."

"Right?"

"But it's not bad, Em. Just strange. Did she tell you why?"

"She just said that they were overprotective after what happened before." Emily rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, but can you blame them? I mean, they had to uproot their whole lives, so it must've been serious." Emily nodded her head. It hadn't seemed all that understandable to her, but, if Hanna thought it was reasonable, maybe, Emily thought, she was just overreacting.

"But I'm not a politician's daughter. My parents don't care that I'm gay."

"Maybe they're worried that Paige will tell you her secret? Then, if you have a bad break-up, you could use it against her?"

"Ugh. God. I don't know. Maybe."

"I'm sure it's something like that."

Emily decided to come clean and let Hanna know what she was really afraid of.

"So, you don't think that she's just, you know, lying to me? Like, maybe she still has a girlfriend in Nebraska?"

Hanna pouted and pretended to think it over. She wanted to stick up for Paige, and keep Emily from letting her fears make her miss out on a chance at something good, but she didn't want to appear to be dismissing Emily's fears out of hand. She had to appear to be considering them, if she wanted to be believable. "That doesn't really sound like her, does it?"

Emily shrugged. "We don't really know her, do we? And she's already shown that she can lie, Hanna. I mean, 'Tricia?' "

"Okay, but there are easier ways to had a girlfriend back home than coming up with a huge story like that, don't you think?"

"I'm not saying that the story is a complete lie. Maybe she did have to leave town because of a girl. But maybe she's still seeing her on the sly..."

"Then, wouldn't that girl be the one who was hiding from her parents? Tricia would be more than happy for her parents to find out about you. It would be the perfect cover story, if she wanted them to think that she had moved on."

Emily stood up and massaged her forehead with her fingers. "I don't know, Hanna. It just seems fishy. That's all I'm saying. As my Dad always says, 'If it sounds too good to be true, then it probably is.' "

"And all I'm saying," Hanna replied, standing up and putting her hands on Emily's shoulders, "is don't jump to any conclusions, okay? I'm sure that Paige has a reason for asking you to keep it quiet from her parents, and I'm sure that she'll tell you eventually. Just give her some time. And, if she doesn't tell you, don't worry. It'll come out, sooner or later. It always does."

"Yeah - and someone always ends up hurt."

"That's the chance that you take in love, Babe." Emily looked at Hanna. She couldn't believe what Hanna had just said. Instead of assuring her that it would be okay, Hanna outright admitted that it was a gamble. "But you know that I wouldn't be telling you this if I didn't think that it will work out okay." Hanna moved her hand from Emily's shoulder to her cheek. "Tricia's a _good_ person, Em. She'll be good for you."


	8. Honorable or Dishonorable

Paige sat fidgeting with the lid from her coffee cup, following Spencer's progress with her eyes as she moved through the line and waited off to she side for her breakfast order. Paige nervously licked her lips several times as Spencer wended her way over to the table, sitting up a little straighter, more conscious of her posture, as Spencer pulled the bag off of her shoulder and took a seat across the table from her.

For Paige, Meeting with Spencer was always like being called into the principal's office. She wasn't sure why. Maybe it was her _faux pas_ from their first meeting. That incident may have been long forgotten, but the imprint of Spencer's disapproving look and condemnatory words were deeply etched in Paige's brain.

Or, perhaps it was just the Hastings aura. The Hastings family was bred to be lawyers - and not the sit-behind-a-desk-and-review-contracts kind of lawyers. They were litigators, the scariest kind of lawyers. It was in Spencer's genes. She could no more escape it than Paige could escape the athletic build and easy grace in the water that she inherited from her dad and mom, respectively.

Paige wasn't sure whether Spencer had asked her to meet for breakfast to reprimand her for having broken some unwritten rule in their study sessions, to give or ask for relationship advice, or just for a simple catch-up between friends - although she was pretty sure that it wasn't that last one.

"So," Spencer said, cutting to the chase as soon as she sat down, "are your intentions towards Emily honorable or dishonorable?"

 _So that's what this is about._ Paige tried to lighten the mood. "Well, Mr. Fields…"

" _Colonel_ Fields, actually." Spencer didn't budge. "Lieutenant Colonel Wayne Fields, US Army. And would you really rather have this conversation with him?"

 _So much for breaking the ice..._ (And there was definitely ice in the stare coming from Spencer.)

"Listen, Spencer," Paige let her voice crack a little, to sound less threatening. It was a negotiating tip that she had picked up from her mother. Spencer obviously had her guard up, so Paige gave her an aural cue that she wasn't there to challenge her. They could talk it through as friends, rather than as adversaries. Paige noticed Spencer's stare soften slightly, and it encouraged her to continue in the conciliatory tone. "I need you to help me out. I don't know where this is coming from."

Spencer studied Paige's body language for any indication that Paige was being evasive. Either she was being evasive, or she didn't know how Emily had reacted following their picnic, or she didn't know that Emily and Spencer had talked. Spencer reasoned that Paige had been around the gang long enough to know that Emily had talked to her; - they talked to each other about everything.

This was a chess match, and Spencer enjoyed chess.

"Why did you tell Emily to hide your relationship from your parents?"

Paige recoiled a bit at the question. She wasn't surprised that Spencer knew, but she thought that she and Emily had already settled that question. She certainly didn't feel the need to defend herself to Emily's friends.

"I would like to keep my relationship with Emily between Emily and me." Paige's voice was calm but firm.

Spencer leaned back a little bit, spreading her fingers, conceding that point. "Fair enough," she said. "But let me give you some background."

Spencer told Paige about Maya, the first love of Emily's life. Maya had been good for Emily when Emily was coming to terms with who she was. It was as if she saw things in Emily that Emily couldn't see in herself, and she encouraged Emily to acknowledge them, both within herself and in front of the world.

But there was always a secretive side to Maya; always things that Emily wasn't allowed to discuss with her parents or her teammates or friends. It was as if Maya demanded loyalty and allegiance to herself first and foremost, framing it as the way that Emily could show her love for her.

"It put Emily in a very difficult position. She doesn't like lying to those closest to her. And, when Maya turned out to be cheating on her, she discovered that the loyalty and allegiance only went one way. And she learned that, a person who can ask you to lie for her can just as easily be lying to you."

Paige listened intently, nodding her head as Spencer explained things.

"Emily didn't ask me to talk to you," Spencer said, as she began winding down her case. "And I wouldn't be here if I didn't think that you were worthy of hearing this. I think that you can be good for Emily, but you just need to know some things about her past."

Paige saw what had happened. Spencer was playing bad cop/good cop. But her intentions were honorable, as were Paige's. "I've been as honest as I can with Emily," Paige replied truthfully.

She hoped that, someday, she would be able to be completely honest with Emily.

* * *

Paige and Spencer fell into their usual routine for the rest of breakfast, comparing notes on homework, imitating the annoying habits and pet phrases of their AP teachers, and talking field hockey. This was a new obsession of Spencer's. "I wish I could get you on the team," she repeated. "With that build and your reflexes, you'd be a natural."

"Why, Spencer," Paige replied, deflecting as always, "I'm flattered. Did you just pay me a compliment?"

"Yeah," Spencer deadpanned, "I just want to get you naked in the locker room to check you out!"

Paige dipped her head. "Touché!" she said, grinning at Spencer's reference to the poorly advised comment that Paige had made when they first met. "You know, it's not the locker room that worries me, though. It's the team photos."

Spencer did know, of course. They'd discussed this before. She wasn't actually trying to recruit Paige. She was just wishing out loud.

"Besides," Paige continued. "I hear that you're top dog on the squad. I wouldn't want to unseat you and damage your fragile little ego!"

Spencer didn't even bother to roll her eyes. She just shook her head as she took another sip of her coffee.

* * *

Emily had swim practice that morning. Paige checked in with her via text, but she didn't call her till that evening. She didn't want it to seem as if she were calling because of the talk that she and Spencer had had - although that was actually why she called.

Emily yawned as she picked up the phone, but Paige heard a smile in her voice. "I was hoping that you'd call," Emily admitted, and her sleepy voice sent a quiver into Paige's stomach.

"Oh, I'm sorry, Em! Did I call too late?"

"No," Emily protested quickly. "I'm not going to bed. I just put my pajamas on after practice." Emily realized how silly that statement was. That's not why Paige was asking; she couldn't see that Emily was wearing pajamas, of course. "It was just a rough work-out, today, you know?"

"Yeah," Paige groaned sympathetically. "I've got to admit: I don't miss those days." Paige heard the bed springs rattle. "Are you okay?"

"Mmhmm," Emily breathed. "Just a little stiff."

"Aww... I wish I could come over there and rub your shoulders down."

 _Oh God, yes!_ "And my back," Emily said.

" _Could_ I come over?"

Emily laughed. "You're sweet. But I don't think that Mama Fields would go for that plan!"

Paige grumbled into the phone. She was grateful that Emily had assumed that she was being sweet when she offered to rub down her shoulders and back. There was actually very little sweetness behind her desire to come over.

She needed to change the subject immediately. Her imagination was already going crazy, wondering what Emily pajamas was wearing and picturing her stretching out, trying to relieve her muscle aches. The image of her sitting on Emily's hips as she leaned over and rubbed deep into that golden brown skin...

"Have you heard from your dad?" she almost yelled, quickly changing the subject. _Army. Military. Guys in uniforms._ Anything to chase the images of Emily out of her head.

Emily was grateful for the opportunity to talk through her feelings about her dad, and how hard it was on her mother and her when he was away. She spoke with genuine pride at the way that he was serving his country.

But, mostly, she was grateful that Paige was taking an interest in her parents. It helped to relieve her fear about Paige's desire to hide things from her own parents.

"Well, I can't wait to meet him."

"I can't wait for you to meet him." A thought entered Emily's head. "Tricia - what if my parents say something to your parents?"

Paige sighed. That thought had crossed her mind, as well. "Well," she said evenly, "we'll have to cross that bridge when we come to it."

"Okay," Emily said softly, grateful that Paige hadn't suggested that she ask her parents to lie.

There was silence on the line, but neither one of them wanted to hang up.

"So what did you and Spencer talk about at breakfast?"

Paige laughed. "Oh, you know. The usual stuff. She worships me, and she's trying to get me on the field hockey team."

"No way! I've got dibs! If you go out for any sport, it'd better be swimming!"

Paige sighed. "I would love that." It was Emily's turn to groan sympathetically.

Paige was the one who broke the next period of comfortable silence. "Spencer told me about Maya." She decided that she needed to be honest and forthcoming. It wasn't that she was worried that Spencer would tell Emily what they had talked about, adding fuel to the fire of Emily's doubts over whether or not she could trust Paige not to keep secrets from her. Although she was certain that Spencer wouldn't mention anything to Emily, she thought that Emily would want to know that she knew about Maya.

Emily sat up on one elbow in the bed, switching her phone to the other ear. "Yeah?" she asked tentatively.

"Yeah. That must've been so hard for you."

Emily knew why Spencer had told Paige. And she knew what Paige was telling her, by bringing it up: Yes, Paige had her secrets, but she wasn't going to do wrong by Emily. "Well," Emily sighed, "Maya was my past. I prefer to think about the future."

"I'm sorry, Em."

"Don't be. I'm glad that you told me." Emily was telling the truth. She was glad that Paige had brought it up. And, once it had been mentioned, they could move on, with the conversation and with their relationship.

* * *

 **A/N - I'm grateful and indebted to reviewers who point out the things I miss - like Spencer's perspective, and what happened to Emily to make her doubt Paige.**

 **Just a note to any Emaya shippers who may be reading this: I apologize for using Maya as the villain. I don't like it when I read fics in which authors trash Paige. Please understand that I don't mean to treat your ship with disrespect. (I actually ship Emaya, too.) I just needed some rationale for Emily's suspicions toward Paige. Ship & let ship, right? 3  
**


	9. Pool Days

The conversation with Paige helped to give Emily a bit of perspective on their relationship. She decided to surrender to her heart rather than her fears, and just let herself go. There was still a small voice in the back of her head that kept trying to warn her to be on her guard against something not quite right, but she chose to ignore it. She was going to live for the moment. If Paige wasn't as innocent as she seemed, and this thing with her turned out to be just a senior-year fling, Emily was, at least, going to enjoy the fling.

And it was definitely enjoyable – especially on the days when she went over to Paige's for some pool time.

There was a marked difference on their pool days when Claire McCullers was home and when she was out. When she was home, Paige kept looking over her shoulder at the kitchen window, wary of prying eyes. There was an excitement to those days; an excitement fueled by danger. There was something about kissing Paige on the sly and sneaking gentle caresses under the water. It felt like playing hide and seek as a child; the quiver in the stomach as you crouched in your hiding place with your heart beating out of your chest, trying your best to calm your breathing, knowing that someone was out there gunning for you.

In a moment of revelation, Emily realized that this was what Paige and her family had to endure every day, on the run and hiding from the power-hungry politician back in Nebraska.

The times when Claire wasn't there were totally different. There was a lot of squealing and playful chasing, in and out of the pool - an excuse for playful touching when one of them caught the other.

* * *

Emily developed a fondness for provoking Paige. It brought out Paige's competitiveness. One time, as they were kissing good-bye, Emily began subtly edging closer and closer to the pool. Paige had no idea what was up until, with an evil laugh, Emily gave her a push, and she felt herself tumbling backwards into the water. Paige surfaced immediately and grabbed for Emily's heels, to pull her down with her, but Emily was too fast.

Paige hoisted herself out of the pool and chased after Emily, almost tripping over her soaked sweatpants as she ran at top speed. Emily twisted and turned away from Paige like a gazelle fleeing a lion. This gazelle, though, wasn't too interested in getting away. She squealed, "No!" at top volume several times, when Paige got close. All the while she was running, she kept glancing back to see Paige hard on her trail.

Paige tackled her onto the grass and fell on top of her, locking her elbows with her palms on the grass at Emily's sides, maintaining a distance between the two of them. Emily's elbows were resting on the grass, with her hands on Paige's sides. They weren't there to hold Paige's up as much as to touch Paige's firm stomach, enjoying the slight twitch that she got in response when she swiped her thumbs back and forth every few seconds.

Emily looked up at the heaving of Paige's chest as the two of them fought to catch their breath. She moved her eyes up to Paige's face, where saw a look that she hadn't seen before and wasn't able read. She bit the corner of her lip in nervous anticipation. Paige seemed suspended in time. Emily would have thought that time itself had stopped were it not for the droplets of water landing on her as they dripped from Paige's hair, body, and sweatpants.

After staring at her for what seemed like forever, Emily reached behind Paige's neck to pull her down. Paige let her elbows flex and landed on top of Emily, their lips working furiously against each other.

As time switched back to normal speed, Emily realized the folly of her what she had done, pulling Paige on top of her. "Tricia!" she squealed, "You're all wet!"

Paige froze for a second. _Is it that obvious?_ When she realized what Emily meant, she said, "It's your fault!" _Emily had no idea how much._

"You're making _me_ wet!" Emily protested. Only when she saw the smug, devilish grin on Paige's face did she pick up on what Paige was thinking during their conversation. She swatted her on the shoulder. "You're so bad!"

Emily rolled on top of Paige and kissed her some more. She ended up resting, with her elbow digging uncomfortably into Paige's shoulder, as she sighed. "I really do have to get home."

Paige nodded sadly as Emily traced her index finger over Paige's eyebrows, then the bridge of her nose, and, finally, her lips. "Besides," she said as her finger continued its exploration, "your mom will be home soon."

That thought sobered Paige up. She sat up, her arm behind Emily's back to steady her in her spot. She gave Emily one last lingering kiss and pressed their heads together. "I love swimming with you," she said under her breath.

"I love it, too. I wish you could be on the team."

Paige smiled. "I do, too. You don't know how much."

Emily sighed. "But it's more fun when I get you one-on-one." Her finger was still obsessed with Paige's face, now teasing its way across Paige's bottom lip. "All to myself."

Those last words sent a tingle to Paige's stomach. She nodded and stood up realizing that, if they kept going, she would never be able to let Emily go. Paige started to brush the grass off the back of her pants. "Let me help you," Emily said, blatantly copping a feel.

"And you say that I'm the perv!"

"You are," Emily teased. "I'm just bolder than you are."

"Oh really?"

"Yeah, really." Emily winked. "Hanna told me all about how you couldn't keep your eyes off my booty the day that you showed up at The Brew!" Emily twisted her backside toward Paige and wiggled it.

Paige turned a new shade of red at the knowledge that Hanna had tattled on her. "I wasn't..." Paige stopped mid-denial and smiled a guilty smile. "Yeah, I was."

Emily reached behind Paige's neck and pulled herself close. Paige's hands found the sides Emily's waist on reflex. "I used to lie awake at night trying to convince myself that you might actually like me," she admitted. "And I kept picturing you staring at my ass."

Paige shrugged. "You have a nice ass," she said, smoothing her hands over it as Emily purred deep in her throat at the warm, firm feel of Paige's hands. "But I like everything that it comes with."

"You're sweet." Emily gave Paige's cheek a peck. "But I've got to go."

"Do you want to borrow some sweats? You don't want to walk home in those wet things?"

Emily shook her head. "It probably wouldn't look too good if I came back from your place wearing your clothes!"

"Em, we we're _swimming_! It's not as if you're coming over here for a quickie!"

This got a laugh out of Emily. "I guess you're right!"

* * *

Paige waited outside her bedroom door while Emily changed into some of her sweats. As Emily pulled the shirt over her head, she caught a whiff of its scent and said to herself, "Yeah, you're never getting this shirt back, Bradshaw!" She might have to trade it in for a fresh one later, after Paige's scent started to fade.

"Wouldn't have pegged you for a K State fan," Emily said with a giggle, pointing at the logo on the sweatshirt that she had borrowed, as she emerged from the bedroom. Her words were lost on Paige. Paige's mind was already miles away, torn between thinking that Emily looked perfect at that moment and wishing that Emily was wearing the shirt the way that Paige usually did – with no sweatpants underneath it.

Paige loved that sweatshirt. It was a couple of sizes too big, incredibly soft, and a little worn at the elbows – tailor made for relaxing on a gloomy day. But seeing Emily in it, looking like a kid playing dress-up in her dad's closet, with her hands holding onto the cuffs, was more than Paige could handle. She pulled Emily in by the waist, and, when she did, the collar dropped off of Emily's left shoulder, forming a perfect frame around Emily's collar bone. It was nothing compared to what Paige had seen when they were in the pool together, but framed like that, it was turning Paige on.

When Emily caught a glimpse of Paige's eyes, focused like a laser on her shoulder, her lips parted slightly, and her tongue slipped out to wet them. She leaned back ever so slightly, her subconscious mind moving barely perceptibly to offer up her shoulder to Paige. She wanted Paige's lips and teeth running roughshod over the flesh there. She wanted to be marked. She wanted _Paige_ to mark her - and then soothe the spot with her warm, wet tongue. It wasn't enough that she was in Paige's clothes. She wanted something of Paige etched deep into her skin.

Paige shook her head clear, before she did something that neither of them was ready for. "I need to stop," she husked.

"Okay." Emily's reply was barely audible as she expelled the last remaining puff of air from her lungs.

Paige walked Emily to her car, then spun around and walked through the gate into her back yard. She strode calmly over to the pool and jumped in, standing ramrod straight. The chilly water was just what she needed to cool down her engines.

Emily heard the splash as she sat still in her car, waiting for her body to stop quivering before she dared attempt to start the car.


	10. Betrayed

Everyone was hyped for the Sharks' first meet of the season. Paige filed into the stands with Aria, Hanna, and Spencer, and they staked their claim to a section of seats on the cold, metal bench in the front. Hanna started hooting and hollering for Emily during the practice laps.

Paige looked at Emily as she paced back and forth in her long, hooded Sharks cover-up. Her hands were in her pockets, and her eyes were closed, for the most part. She looked calm and confident. Paige knew the ritual well. She could imagine the thoughts that were going through Emily's head as the music played through her earbuds.

This was a new experience for Paige. She had never sat in the bleachers for a meet. She let out a sigh as the new reality sank in.

Paige scanned the crowd as the stands began to fill up. Across the way, on the visitors' side, there were some people who didn't quite fit in. They were a little older, and they were dressed oddly. It wasn't anything major; just enough to stick out. It was as if they were going out of their way to try to look like ordinary spectators.

Paige got an uneasy feeling, but she relaxed as the meet got underway. Her cheers rivaled Hanna's, during Emily's races. Emily definitely heard them as she stood waiting to dive in, and when she emerged from the water. But Paige kept a wary eye on the visitors, careful not to let herself look _too_ enthusiastic about Emily.

After the race, the four of them all headed down to pool level to give Emily their congratulations. When it was Paige's turn, Emily leaned in for a kiss, but Paige just offered a hug and a high five. Emily looked puzzled, till she reasoned what was going on. "Your parents are here?" she whispered. When Paige shook her head no, Emily smacked her playfully on the shoulder. "So kiss me!" she said, a bit louder.

"Oh, sure," Paige said, and she leaned in. But she kissed Emily's cheek.

"Tricia!" Paige looked at her, playing innocent. "I just swam a great meet, if I must say so myself. Show some enthusiasm?"

Paige giggled nervously. "I can't be too enthusiastic, Em. I wouldn't want it to go to your head so that you start slacking off!"

Emily shook her head amiably, but she couldn't help feeling that something was up. She followed Paige's eyes, trying to find whom they were tracking in the stands, but she didn't see anyone suspicious.

* * *

Paige got home and slammed the door. "Patricia Bradshaw!" her mother scolded with a stern look.

"You told them?" Paige shouted. She felt upset, but more hurt - and mostly betrayed.

Claire McCullers sighed. "Chet," she called out, and she took Paige's hand, to get her to sit down. Paige jerked her hand away and turned aside, choosing to stand.

"Now, Tricia," Claire said softly, trying to calm Paige before Nick got there and the fireworks really started. "You _know_ that we have to let them know about your friends, if there could be a problem."

"About my _friends_? So, you told them about Hanna? Spencer? Aria?"

"Now, Honey, you know that Emily's different."

"Why? The fact that I have a friend who's gay means that we have to be in a relationship?" Claire held her tongue. "And I told you that there was nothing going on! And you still told them!"

Claire knew not to go there. It was obvious that Emily wasn't just a friend who happened to be gay. "Because she's a swimmer, Trish. A good swimmer. The kind who'll make the news..."

"So? What does that have to do with me? She's not going to drag me up on the podium, or tell everybody about her friend!"

"Tricia..."

"I'm not stupid, Mom! My friends know not to post pictures with me."

"It doesn't have to be your friends. Anyone with a phone can take a picture, without even realizing that they're posting a picture of you."

"So, what are you saying? That I can't be friends with Emily? With anyone?"

"Tricia, don't be such a drama queen," Nick said, earning a glare from his wife. "All we're saying is that you need to do this the right way. Not just for our safety, but for Emily's as well."

Paige's head snapped back a little at that statement. She had never considered that she might be putting Emily - and the rest of her new friends - in danger. She lowered her head.

Claire stood up and wrapped Paige in her arms. "Tricia, Emily is a lovely girl. Your father and I would be happy if the two of you got together."

"Mom..."

"We know that, sooner or later, someone's going to capture your heart. All we're saying is that you need to go about things the right way. For the sake of everyone involved."

* * *

"So, am I just being paranoid, Spencer? Because it still seems fishy. First, we had to hide from her parents. Then, she couldn't kiss me at the meet. Something's not adding up!"

Spencer hesitated, inhaling before she gave Emily the answer that she wouldn't want to hear. "No, Emily, you're not being paranoid."

"Spencer!" Emily was on the verge of tears. "You think that she's cheating on me?"

"No, Em. It's bigger than that."

"What do you mean?"

"You'd better come over. Wait. You shouldn't drive distracted. I'll come over there."

Emily paced around her room over and over until Spencer made it over. Emily sank down on the bed and tucked her left foot under her right thigh as she watched Spencer pull out her laptop.

"So, I had my suspicions about Tricia even before Hanna came up with that story about her mystery lesbian lover." Spencer was typing away at her laptop as she spoke and occasionally tilting it toward Emily to show her something to make her point. "And the story didn't hold water. I've been doing some research, and I can't find anything on a Paige McCullers or Tricia Bradshaw - or any combination of those names. There's no record of anyone Tricia's age, with those names, in that part Nebraska."

"Well, yeah, because they shut it all down."

Spencer shook her head. "They couldn't have done a full wipe like that. I checked archives, birth records, Wayback, everything."

"Wayback?"

"It's a web site that archives old web pages. It lets you see what was posted years ago." Emily nodded. "So, anyway, there's no way that they could do a complete wipe. Not without help. Like, government-level help."

Emily suddenly lowered her voice, as if afraid that someone were listening in. "So, you think that she's a _spy_?"

"A spy in high school? This isn't the Disney Channel, Emily!"

"So..."

"So, there's more. I checked on politicians in that region, and I couldn't find anyone fitting that profile. He would have to be a very prominent politician to have that kind of influence. And, if he had a daughter whose reputation he was concerned about, he would be showcasing her at public affairs, country clubs, campaign events; any way he could to avoid the suspicion that she's a lesbian."

" _Spencer_ ," Emily whined. All of this information was overwhelming. It was killing her. Emily just wanted to know the final answer. "What's the bottom line?"

"I don't know yet, Emily. If Tricia _is_ from Nebraska, then somebody wanted her expunged. Those scenarios aren't pretty. Maybe she committed a crime as a juvenile, and the court ordered all of her records sealed, for example."

"Wait - _if_ she's from Nebraska?"

"She could be from anywhere - anywhere from California to Maine."

"Or Upper Darby," Emily said, thinking it through. That would explain why Tricia wouldn't kiss her after the meet. Maybe Tricia didn't want to be caught by her other girlfriend, who was on the other team or in the stands.

"Right. Maybe there wasn't all of that drama. Maybe her family just moved here, and she wanted to seem like this mysterious, _femme fatale_ with a past. For all we know, her name really _is_ Tricia."

"Do you think that Hanna knows the truth?"

"Hanna? Come on, Em! That story was tailor-made for Hanna. I mean, caught with a politician's daughter? It's straight out of a Hallmark special!"

Emily smiled. "For someone who doesn't watch a lot of TV, you sure do know a lot about TV!"

Spencer threw her hands up in frustration. "That's our culture! It's unavoidable!"

Emily shook her head, then got back to the point. "So, she... lied to Hanna, to... throw her off the trail?" Spencer nodded with a sympathetic half-smile. "Well, what do I do now?"

"Just be careful, Em. Just play it safe until we find out more. It could be nothing, it could be something major. But, either way, you'd be wise to put some emotional distance between yourself and Tricia Bradshaw."


	11. Damage Control

"So, you think that Tricia was lying to us. About lying to us." Hanna shook her head at how ridiculous that sounded - even though she knew that it was the truth.

"I'm just saying, Hanna. I've checked out her story, and it doesn't hold water?"

"And you just automatically assume that she killed a kid? Way to jump to the worst-case scenario, Spencer!"

"Look. She lied to us from the moment she met us..."

"Right - until I figured it out."

"You figured out what she _wanted_ you to figure out, Hanna!"

"What? That story makes perfect sense!" _Especially since I came up with it._

"Of course it does! To you! You don't think that she made up that whole story just because it was something you would believe?"

"Oh, right, Spence. Now, she's not only a kid-killer, but she's a sociopath mind-reader who knows what kind of story I would believe?"

"Well, let's face it, Hanna, you're not the most..."

Hanna gave Spencer a glare that said, "Watch it!"

"Difficult to read, Hanna. I was going to say that you're not the most difficult person to read."

Hanna's ego didn't want Spencer to think that she was so easy to fool. She really wanted to tell her the truth - and she really wanted Spencer to know that she knew the truth - but she knew what that would mean to Paige and her family. She would have to play dumb, and, at the same time, try to figure out how to throw Spencer off the trail.

"And what about Aria and Emily? Are they not very..." Hanna took a deliberate pause, the way Spencer had when she used the phrase. "Difficult to read, either?" Spencer opened her mouth to say something, but Hanna kept going. "Because the only one who seems to be having a problem with Tricia's story is you!"

"And Emily!"

"Emily's got a whole thing going on," Hanna said, shaking her hands at the side of her head. "And you know why she's starting to have doubts. After Maya, she would suspicious of any unusual behavior." Before Spencer could respond, Hanna tried to shift the focus. "Do you have any idea what you did to Emily?" she asked accusingly.

"I told her to be careful," Spencer stated condescendingly. "Wouldn't you want someone to warn you if she knew that Caleb was hiding something?"

"Would you want someone to tell you that Toby might be a kid-killer?" Hanna was visibly shaking. For emphasis, she repeated, " _Might be_?"

Spencer huffed in frustration.

"She called me in tears this morning, Spencer. Honestly, what were you thinking?, You treat everything as if it's some school assignment, with no connection to the real world. All you care about is coming up with the answer. Did you even stop to think that our friends' feelings are involved? Did you even stop to think at all?"

Spencer wrapped one arm around her waist and rubbed her forehead with the other, starting to pace around. What Hanna had said was true: She did have the tendency to go into prosecuting-attorney mode. When she got like that, she understood why people referred to lawyers as sharks. She was relentless. Persistent. Predatory. It was all about the kill. It was the part of herself that she was the most proud of - and the part that she was the most ashamed of.

"Look, Hanna," she said, her tone softer as she stretched out the hand that had been rubbing her forehead, "I get that I can be blinded by my obsessive pursuits sometimes. But I'm really worried about Emily with Paige. I know that there's more to this story. There has to be." Spencer was pleading for understanding and help. Hanna stood and rubbed her shoulder sympathetically. "So, what do I do?"

"Well, first of all, you call Em and tell her that the girls she's dating isn't a murderer!"

Spencer laughed at how ridiculous the theory sounded when Hanna put it that way. Nodding her head, she replied, "Okay."

"And, second, you keep an eye on Paige. On the DL. And you let me help you. I can be more subtle than you are, and I can get Paige's trust." _And I can throw you off the trail if you start to get too close._

Spencer nodded. She knew that Hanna's relationship with Paige and her skills at dealing with people could only be an asset.

"And we say _nothing_ to _anybody_ until we have proof, okay?"

"Okay," Spencer nodded.

* * *

Hanna's next step was to call Paige. "Hey. Can you talk?"

"Sure," Paige said, closing her bedroom door. "What's up?"

"You've got some damage control to do."

Hanna told Paige that Spencer had gotten Emily all worked up, that she had calmed Emily down a bit, and that she would work with Spencer, to keep her off Paige's trail. "But you need to talk to Emily. You'd better come up with some damned good reason that you couldn't kiss her."

* * *

After Paige hung up the phone from her brief conversation with Hanna, she sat up in her bed, with both feet on the floor and her head in her hands. She needed to think things through. She felt that there could be something special between the her and Emily, but she needed to figure out whether or not it had the potential to be something permanent. Once she let Emily in on her family's secret - _if_ she let Emily in - there could be no going back. She wasn't just thinking about herself. There would be no going back for either of them. She wasn't sure that she wanted to subject Emily to that.

Paige reached under her bed and pulled out a box with relics from her former life, buried under a couple of layers of sweaters and a false bottom. There were medallions that she had earned for swimming, some report cards (the real ones, not the faked transcripts provided by the good folks at Witness Protection), and a few pictures that the caseworkers told her not to put up around her room because they contained references to her former life - pictures with the swim team, or pictures that had her name written on them.

At the very bottom was the item that she was looking for: Her high school yearbook. It still had that newly printed smell to it. Paige ran her finger over the raised letters on the cover of the book before she opened it up. The smile that was on her face as she looked through the pages for her class quickly turned into tears as she read the inscriptions that her classmates had written, pledging their unending friendship and love; many calling her "Captain M," referring to the fact that she would captain the swim team in her senior year; some with small anchors inked next to the hearts that they drew.

Of course, the captaincy never came, and unending friendships ended abruptly in one night.

Paige didn't let herself get melancholy like this very often. She was sick of thinking how unfair it all was - and how unfair it was that she couldn't even let herself call it unfair, because it wasn't her dad's fault. And because she knew that there were people - kids her age and even younger - who had to deal with things that were even more unfair; things like poverty, abuse, and debilitating childhood diseases.

But, the fact was, her circumstances _did_ suck. And she wasn't sure that it was fair drag Emily into all of that. Paige and her family were never given a choice in the matter. Their circumstances made the choices for them. But Paige had a choice when it came to Emily. Perhaps, she thought, the truest act of love would be to step aside and let Emily live her life, free and unburdened.

* * *

Emily's head was swimming. What should have been one of her best days - she had done so well at the meet, with Paige there to see it - turned out to be really bad. And the weekend only got worse when she talked to Spencer.

Emily hugged her childhood friend, Teddy McBearson, close to her chest as she walked around confused and frustrated. Aria had told her one thing, Hanna had told her another, and, Spencer, still a third thing. About the only one whom she hadn't heard from was Paige. She picked up her phone a couple of times only to set it back down again. Paige was the one who should call. Paige was the one cheating on her or lying to her - or both. And, maybe, she even killed a kid.

Deep in her heart, Emily trusted Paige - or she _wanted_ to trust Paige. The way that her heart had always wanted her to trust Maya. She hung in there way too long on that one. She wasn't going to go down that road again.

Emily got changed for bed. She lay down with a book, but she couldn't concentrate. She couldn't sleep, either, and she realized that she wasn't going to be able to until she made a phone call. She swallowed a deep breath and some of her pride and dialed the number from memory, rather than going through her contacts.

"Hello?" she heard from a deep, sleepy voice.

"Dad?"

"Hey, Kiddo! It's kind of late there. Is everything all right?"

Emily only sighed into the phone.

"What's going on, Emmy?"

"Dad, how can I tell when somebody's lying to me?"

"Is this about that girl you've been seeing? ... Tricia?"

"Mmhmm." Emily nodded her head as she answered. She didn't want to admit that she had called her dad to talk about someone who was going to break her heart, but there was no use denying it. It was painfully obvious.

"What makes you think that she's lying to you?"

That was typical Wayne Fields. He would want to get all of the relevant facts before he made his determination. He already knew about the politician's daughter, so Emily filled him in on the rest: The non-kiss, Spencer's research, the fact that Paige hadn't contacted her or tried to explain. Her father listened intently, only saying "Uh huh, uh huh" periodically, to let Emily know that he was following. From what she knew of her dad, she assumed that he was taking notes.

When Wayne sensed that Emily had told him everything that she had to say, he made a couple of humming noises into the phone as he thought things over. "And what does Hanna think about all of this?"

"She thinks that I should trust her."

"Uh huh, uh huh. Well, Hanna's good at reading people." Emily heard a pencil tapping against the desk as she waited for her father to speak again. "Well, there's only one other person you need to hear from."

Emily didn't have to ask who that was. "So, call her?"

"Nah," her dad said with certainty. "Face to face. You need to be able to see her face to know whether or not she's telling the truth."

"Okay."

"Best case, she opens up to you on her own. But, if she doesn't, you ask her straight out, Emmy. Now, don't do it in a threatening way, or she'll get defensive. Keep calm. Keep _her_ calm. That way, you can see her real reaction. It's a lot easier to read a calm reaction than a panicked reaction."

"Okay. Okay." Emily was nodding her head again. "Dad?"

"Yeah, Hon?"

"Do _you_ think that I can trust her?"

Wayne knew why she was asking. Emily wasn't expecting him to make a judgment, because had never met Paige, and he had only heard Emily's version of the events. What Emily was asking for was affirmation that it wasn't foolish of her to trust Paige. Wayne didn't want to extinguish her hope, but he didn't want to stoke it, either, in case it was false hope.

He chose his words carefully.

"Emmy, trust is something that has to be earned. Now, she's built up a balance of credibility in the time that you two have been together, correct?"

"Yeah, I guess."

"But, when she didn't kiss you, she was making a withdrawal from that balance. And it sounds as if she's overdrawn."

Emily nodded and said, "Yeah."

"So, she's got to build that balance up again. And that means that you've got to find out why that happened. And if you get the right answer, then her credit's good. But if she wavers, or if she's not honest with you, or if the answer's not acceptable, then you've got to cut her off. No more loans."

"Okay, Dad." Emily couldn't help think that her dad would get along well with Paige's dad, the accountant.

The thought of Paige's dad reminded Emily just how shaky Paige's credit was. When Paige asked to hide from her parents, Emily went along with it. Now, Paige wanted her to be okay with hiding from someone else - without even admitting that there was someone else whom she was hiding from. Whatever explanation Paige came up with, it would have to be something pretty good, if it was going to get Paige back into the plus column.

* * *

There was one text from Paige that night:

 **TriciaB: missed u today**

Emily texted back a heart, half-heartedly, and turned off her phone. Her dad was right. They would have to do this face to face.

* * *

 **A/N - This one kind of rambled, didn't it? Sorry; I'm not at my best (exhausted), but I wanted to get something posted today. Thanks for reading!  
**


	12. Truth or Consequences

Emily tapped her foot on the ground as she stood behind the counter at The Brew after school on Monday. She kept a nervous eye on the door, waiting for Paige to come in. When Paige finally did come in, it was with a wide smile and a kiss for Emily, as if Saturday had never happened.

As much as Emily enjoyed the fact that Paige was back to kissing her in public after the fiasco at her meet on Saturday, they still needed to talk. She gave Paige her ordinary smile and coffee and let her get settled into her favorite booth. As usual, she checked on Paige occasionally and joined her on her break.

As soon as she sat down next to Paige, she let her have it with both barrels. "Tricia, don't you think that honesty is the most important thing in a relationship?"

Her dad was right. She needed to know the truth. She had made up her mind that, if Paige wouldn't come clean with her about why she wouldn't kiss her, they were over. And, of course, if Paige admitted that she was two-timing her, they were over. The best case scenario was that they could end up being friends, eventually, if Paige had been lying to her all along, but had some explanation that, given enough time, Emily could forgive.

Whatever the truth was, Emily wasn't just going to sit back and wait for life happen to her. Not this time. She cared about Paige, and she wanted them to work. But she needed to know whether the their story was going to end up being epic or tragic.

The smile fell from Paige's face at Emily's question, and she dipped her head. "I actually wanted to talk with you about Saturday." Emily nodded, somewhat skeptical that Paige had been planning to talk about it all along. She certainly gave no evidence of that over the rest of the weekend. "I was going to ask you whether or not you could come by after work tonight."

"Okay," Emily said nervously. It had to be bad news, she knew, or Paige would just tell her. "But are you going to tell me what this is about, or are you just going to make me stew over it until my shift ends?"

"I can't really get into it here," Paige said, her voice lowered. Emily tried not to roll her eyes. Paige engulfed Emily's hands in hers. "But I _can_ tell you that I care about you, Emily, and that I want us to be together. Otherwise, I wouldn't be asking you to come over."

"Okay," Emily said again. She didn't like it, but at least she would have an answer, she hoped, later that night. Whether she and Paige would still be together the next morning, she wasn't sure. "What time?"

"Can I come get you at 8?"

The fact that Paige wanted to pick her up sounded weird – foreboding – but Emily nodded her assent.

When it was time for Paige to go, she walked up to the counter and pulled Emily in for a tight hug, longer and tighter than their usual good-bye hugs, and gave her a tentative kiss. "I'll see you at 8," she reminded her, with a hint of sadness in her voice.

* * *

Paige rang Emily's doorbell just before 8:00 and stood on the porch, nervously running her hand through her hair until Pam let her in. She waited with Pam, awkward and silent, until Emily made her way downstairs. Pam whispered a "good luck" to Emily as she and Paige walked out.

They were silent throughout the short walk to Paige's house. Paige held Emily's hand the entire time. She was holding it almost painfully tight, but it didn't feel like possessiveness to Emily. It felt more like fear. Emily wasn't sure whether Paige was afraid about what she was going to tell Emily, or afraid about how Emily would react.

Somewhere deep inside, she had the feeling that this might be her last time holding hands with Tricia Bradshaw.

When Paige opened the front door and ushered Emily inside, Emily's feeling of dread grew even more intense. Paige's parents were sitting at the dining room table, as were a man and a woman in business attire. Claire McCullers was the only one showing any hint of a smile. The others were poker-faced. There were a couple of Manila folders on the table.

"Do you want something to drink?"

Emily shook her head. She just wanted to get it over with. She needed to know what this was all about before her heartbeat became visible through her hoodie. From the way that the two strangers were dressed, perhaps teenage spies _weren't_ , as Spencer claimed, only a thing on the Disney Channel.

Paige pulled out a seat for Emily and sat next to her. Claire McCullers, on Emily's right, reached out her hand and stroked Emily's back. Paige held Emily's hand for a moment, then moved her hand to her forehead, rubbing it nervously. Emily's first inclination was to rub Paige's arm, to comfort her, but she decided that she had better get the story before she got too comfortable with Paige.

Nick McCullers introduced the caseworkers, Kim and Andy, to Emily, and they got down to business. Emily sat in stunned silence as the caseworkers told her everything: names, places, dates, and the specific threats that had been made against Nick and his family.

Paige just kept looking down at her hands on top of the table, overwhelmed by guilt.

When the caseworkers asked whether Emily had any questions, she looked at Paige. Paige returned her gaze, her eyes pleading. "Emily, I didn't want to lie to you, I swear. But I didn't want to drag you into all of this, either."

Emily held Paige's shoulder, her eyebrows knit together in concern. "Patricia, are you okay?" Emily was surprised to hear herself using the formal name, but it seemed more appropriate in the moment; more urgent, and, somehow, more intimate.

Paige was equal parts relieved that Emily seemed to understand why she had been lying to her, and stunned that her first question was about how _she_ was doing. She nodded weakly in reply, and turned the question around. "Are _you_?"

"I will be," Emily said. "It's a lot." She laughed nervously. When she caught her breath, she asked, "Hanna?"

"Hanna knows," Paige said. She had already disclosed to her parents and the caseworkers the way that Hanna had called her out. "It's not that I chose to tell her and chose not to tell you, Em" Paige explained. "When she confronted me, I kind of panicked. She knew that something was up, and I couldn't come up with a plausible cover story. She's the one who came up with the politician's daughter thing," Paige scoffed.

Emily clutched Paige's arm a little tighter. She wasn't bothered by the fact that Paige had told Hanna rather than her. She was only worried about everything that Paige was going through.

"Well," Kim began, "we have some questions for you."

Emily told them about her swimming and her family. She told them about Spencer's suspicions and investigation.

The caseworkers conferred for several seconds. "Okay," Kim announced, "we'll let Spencer continue her investigation. She shouldn't be able to turn up anything."

"But keep those lines of communication open," Andy chimed in. "If she does uncover anything, we'll need to know about it. _Stat_ "

"It might actually help us to sew up any loose ends that we may have missed," Kim said.

"But we never miss any loose ends." Andy added quickly. He wanted to reassure their clients that they weren't in any danger.

"No," Kim agreed. "We don't. That's why it's important that we keep a tight rein on this. We're going to meet with Hanna and Ms. Marin, and, Emily, we'll need to meet with your parents."

"My Dad's in Texas," Emily blurted out. She was relieved that the caseworkers weren't going to ask her to keep things from her parents. She was also relieved that they would be on hand to help her explain things to them.

"That's not a problem. Do you Skype?"

Emily nodded.

"Is that secure?" Nick asked.

"It may not be a secure medium, but no one has any reason to be tapping into Emily's Skype account," Andy said.

"No one knows that you're in Rosewood, and there's nothing to connect you to Emily," Kim explained.

"We do need to be vigilant," Andy added, "but not paranoid. The bad guys are out there, but they're not everywhere. We don't have to worry that they're tracking every electronic conversation in the country at every given moment."

"No, we just have to be concerned about persistent media - things that get posted on-line and stay up there. We have to assume that they're doing image-searches on a daily basis."

"And, Emily, you and Hanna can help with that. If you see any posts where Tricia is visible..." Andy nodded at Emily, and she nodded back to confirm.

* * *

After everything was resolved, Paige walked Emily home. They took the long way. They both wanted more time to talk, although neither of them had mentioned that as the reason for taking the long way. They just ended up going that way. And although they wanted more time to talk, they weren't actually doing much talking.

Paige was still clutching Emily's hand tight. "So," she said after a bit.

"So," Emily repeated.

Paige stopped in her tracks and turned to face Emily, taking both of her hands. "Emily, I'm so, so sorry."

Emily smiled, reaching up to brush the hair away from Paige's face. She let her hand remain on Paige's cheek for a moment before she dropped it down to her shoulder as she asked, "For what?"

"For lying to you... for dragging you into this. I don't know - for everything, I guess." Paige turned her head to the side so that Emily wouldn't see the budding tears. She leaned it down against her shoulder to wipe them away.

"Hey," Emily said, using her other hand to turn Paige's face toward her. "I'm not mad, Tricia. I understand why you did what you did. And I'm sorry that you had to go through all of that." She kissed Paige's cheek, picking up the faint taste of a tear. "Thank you for letting me in." Emily knew how much it meant that Paige had let her in. It meant that Paige was serious about a future for the two of them.

Paige nodded her head and hugged Emily. After a sigh, she took Emily's hand and they started walking again. "So, you're not going to break up with me?" Paige asked, watching the sidewalk underneath her feet.

Emily bumped Paige with her shoulder. "You're going to have to come up with a better story than that to scare me away!" Paige smiled at this, and gave Emily's hand a squeeze.

When they stopped at Emily's porch, Paige offered to come in to help Emily explain what was going on. Emily shook her head. She knew that seeing Paige in all puffy-eyed and mopey would only make her mother panic. "Just hold me for a minute, okay?"

"Gladly." Paige needed it as much as Emily did, and she held on as if she were clinging to a lifeline. "We're going to be okay?"

Emily stepped back and stroked Paige's cheek. "We're going to be okay," she said confidently. "We _are_ okay. I love you."

Paige smiled and pulled Emily in again, giving her a kiss after they hugged. "I love you, too!" she said eagerly.

It wasn't their first kiss, but it was the kiss that sealed the first time that they had acknowledged their love for each other, and Emily was floating on air. As she closed the door behind her, she leaned against it, touching the lips that were still tingling from the electricity of that kiss.

* * *

"Good night?" Pam asked, walking up to Emily with a smile.

Emily was startled back into the present by her mother's voice, and yanked back down to earth by the weight of what they had to discuss. "Yeah. Mom." Emily linked their arms and led her mother over to the couch. "But there's something that I have to tell you."

* * *

 **A/N - Pardon the interruption. I've noticed that, since about a week ago, the FF site and app only mark this story as updated every other day (and my views drop off significantly on days when it's not marked as updated).**

 **I'm guessing that people who follow me get notifications every time I update, but everyone else, just so you'll know: I update every day - usually at around 9AM GMT Monday-Thursday, and before 1PM/13:00 GMT Friday-Sunday.**

 **Not that I expect you to spend every day with this story... :) Thanks for reading!**

 **(This chapter puts me at just over a half million words published on FF in the year & 5 days since I started writing. Can't even believe that...)  
**


	13. Love or Confusion

"Ooh, I don't know about this, Emmy."

"I know, Mom. I know. And I know that you have a million questions. I did, too. I mean, I do, too. I still have a million questions. That's why Tricia's caseworkers want to meet with you and Dad. They can explain everything."

"Honey, it's not safe. I know that you're young, and you think that you're bulletproof, but the world is a dangerous place..." Pam saw the look of frustration in her daughter's eyes, but it didn't change what she was feeling. "Why would Tricia - _Paige_ \- drag you into all of this?"

"Because she loves me, Mom! And she thinks that we might have a future together!"

Pam's head snapped back at that. "She loves you? She doesn't even know you! Three months ago there was no 'Tricia Bradshaw!' "

"I know, I know, Mom. But this whole thing has just made us think about everything, you know? We've been through more crap in a couple of months than most couples have in a year!"

"Emmy, you're 18. And that feels grown up, but you have so much life ahead of you. I know that it seems as if you two have been through a lot, but, Honey, every couple has crap to deal with. And, Emmy, if she _really_ loved you..."

"Oh, Mom, don't start! Please?" Emily whined. "She's in hiding from people who want to kill her whole family. I don't think that there are a lot of 18 year olds out there who've had to deal with that!"

Pam let out a huff. "So what happens in another three months, if you two decide that this wasn't love?"

Emily tightened her lips and closed her eyes, exasperated. She sighed as she answered, "Then I'm free! Mom, Tricia is the one who's at risk. She took a huge chance letting me in like this. I could make her life a living Hell, with what I know. The worst that happens to me is that I just walk away."

Pam sighed in frustration, rubbing her forehead with the palms of both hands. She didn't understand why Paige had gotten her daughter involved in this, but she understood how Emily felt about her. "Okay. I don't like this, Emmy, but it's done."

"You're not going to forbid me to see her?"

"And drive you into her arms?" Emily lightened up a bit at her mother's tone. "I know how these things work, Emily. But you're going to have to give me your word that you're going to tell me everything, okay?"

Emily nodded and said, "Of course," barely audibly.

"Okay." Pam stood up and extended her arms, an Emily got up and accepted the hug. "I love you so much," Pam said, looking up at her taller daughter. As they released, she added, with a tone of resignation, "Let's see what these agents have to say."

"Caseworkers, Mom."

"Caseworkers," Pam repeated with a quick nod.

* * *

"It must have been hard to leave everything you know – every _one_ you know – behind."

Emily was lying on top of Paige in one of the reclining chairs at the side of Paige's pool, trusting that the chair was strong enough to support their combined weight. They hadn't been swimming. They were just enjoying the cool, early autumn evening, waiting for the sun to go down. Emily's head was on Paige's chest, and she was so comfortable that she could easily have fallen asleep.

"It was," Paige affirmed. "Especially with the way that we had to sneak out - like thieves in the night, no explanation, no warning."

"So, none of your friends had any idea what was going on?"

Emily felt Paige shake her head no. "I'm sure that some of them put two and two together after we disappeared. Everyone knew that my Dad's an accountant, and everyone knew that it was an accountant who got the bad guys put away."

"What kind of stuff were they into?"

Paige sighed. "I don't know. My Dad says that it's better that I _don't_ know, and, to tell you the truth, I never really cared to know."

After a bit, Emily decided to ask the question that had been on her mind since the swim meet, when Paige wouldn't kiss her. "Did you leave a girlfriend behind?"

Paige shook her head.

"So, you weren't dating?"

"I had dated a girl, Shana, on and off for a couple of years. But we were broken up long before my family had to move."

Emily nodded into Paige's chest. "This is going to sound horrible," she said, as her fingers danced across the neckline of Paige's shirt, "and don't take it the wrong way, but, sometimes, I wish that _I_ could just move away, you know? Go someplace where no one knows about Maya, or any of the other girls." Emily sat up and looked Paige in the eye, putting her hand on Paige's bare skin above her collar, to maintain the connection. "I mean, Tricia, I'm not minimizing what you guys had to go through. I know that it really sucks."

"No, I get it, Em." Paige tightened her grip around Emily a bit. "Believe me, I understand." Emily relaxed against Paige's chest again, and Paige kissed the top of her head. "I wouldn't mind disappearing with you."

Emily smiled, tracing her finger across Paige's chest along the border of her shirt. "Yeah? And where would we run off to?"

"Paige leaned her head back in thought. "I'm seeing… a tropical island, somewhere. Just the two of us. Nothing to do but pick fruit and eat it, swim in the lagoon, make love under the stars, and sleep on a hammock till the sun comes up."

Emily laughed. "Make love under the stars, huh?"

"And all the other things!" Paige was pretending to get defensive.

"Yeah, I see how it is, ya pervert!"

"Some might say that I'm a romantic!"

"I bet you are, Bradshaw. And you're going to have to be, if you want to get me under the stars."

"Don't worry," Paige assured her. "I'm willing to put in the work!" Emily caressed her cheek. "But, for now," Paige added, "I just want to enjoy the moment. Because this – where we are right now – is perfect."

Emily tilted her head back and kissed her. "Perfect," she agreed. "At least, for now."

"And, when the time comes, I'm going to sweep you off your feet." Emily smiled, squeezing in tighter against Paige. "There'll be some wining and dining, dancing and romancing, singing and… uh… clinging?"

Emily giggled, leaning up to kiss Paige's lips. "Smooth, Bradshaw! You almost pulled it off!"

Paige smoothed her knuckles up Emily's arms, feeling goosebumps. "You're cold."

"A little bit." Emily played it down, not wanting to leave Paige's arms. "Can we just lie here a little bit longer?"

Paige nodded, kissing Emily's forehead. "How did it go with Kim and Andy?"

Emily shrugged. "Okay, I guess. They were really patient. My parents asked some really pointed questions. Like, my Dad worried that they were going to be taking pictures of us, you know? And following us everywhere."

"Oh, no," Paige assured her. "We hardly ever see them. It's not like the Secret Service, where they're always around to protect us. They don't want people to know that we're under protection, you know? They kept telling us, our best protection is just to fade into the background."

"Wow. That sounds so sad."

"Believe me, Em, I would love to fade into the scenery, after all that my family went through."

Emily stroked Paige's cheek. She understood what Paige meant. It was sort of like what Emily meant when she said that she wished she could move away. But it made her think about the incident that ended up with her having to meet with Paige's caseworkers in the first place: Paige didn't want to stick out from the background by kissing Emily after her swim meet. "Are you going to come to my meet on Saturday?" she asked softly.

"I wouldn't miss it!"

"Good," Emily said. She waited a second and added, "And, I understand about the no-kissing. It's okay."

Paige laughed. "Emily, now that I've told the caseworkers about you, I don't have to hide from them anymore. I doubt that they'll even send anyone to the meet."

"Really?" Emily smiled hopefully up at Paige, and Paige nodded eagerly. "Well, good," Emily said with a kiss. "Seeing you kiss me will give Spencer one less thing to worry about."

"Oh really? She worried?"

Emily nodded. "She thinks that you have a girl on the side in Upper Darby, and that she's the reason that you didn't want to be seen kissing me!" Emily paused a bit, bunching some of Paige's collar between her fingers. "I... might be part of the reason that she thinks that."

"Well, if you guys end up swimming against them again," Paige said smugly, "I guess I'll have to avoid kissing you again!"

Emily glared at Paige.

"I'd only be doing it, you know, to throw Spencer off the trail. Make her think that she's right about the girl in Upper Darby?" Emily rolled her eyes when Paige cracked a smile, letting on that she was just messing around.

"Don't you dare!"

Paige looked down at Emily with a warm smile. "You don't have convince me not to avoid kissing you!"

"I don't have to… huh?" Emily laughed. "What the hell did you just say?"

"I just meant that, you know… I _want_ to kiss you. You don't have to talk me into it."

Emily smiled smugly. "So, kiss me!"

* * *

"So, you and Tricia talked it over?" Emily nodded. "And?"

"And, we worked it out."

"Really?" Spencer's eyes bulged. She was genuinely shocked. Only a couple of days earlier, Emily was as suspicious as she was, and now Paige and Emily had, apparently, worked everything out. "And, what exactly did you work out?"

"She just explained it to me - where she's coming from. You know, a small town in the Midwest, where girls don't kiss girls and boys don't kiss boys out in the open like that. Plus, the whole thing with that guy's daughter - she just always feels as if someone's looking over her shoulder. But, she's getting over it, and she said that it won't be like that next time."

"Huh. And you believe her?"

"I believe that she's going to make an effort."

"Okay, but all the other things that we talked about... I still can't find anything about this so-called politician. What's his name?"

"I didn't ask her, Spencer." Emily's tone was warning Spencer not to ask, either. Emily was sure that Spencer wouldn't ask - not directly. That would tip Paige off that she was on her trail. She expected Spencer to be more subtle in probing for cracks in Paige's story.

"So, you're just going to trust her?" Spencer took a warning tone, "Em..."

Emily sighed, letting her shoulders hunch forward. "I don't know that I believe everything that she's told me," Emily lied, pausing as she tried to get the words just right. "But I've decided that I trust her." She looked at Spencer for approval. "If that makes sense?"

Spencer took a moment to digest Emily's words. "No, I get it. You acknowledge that you might not be getting the whole truth from her, but you realize that you trust her intentions."

"Yeah. Exactly. I mean, I love her, Spence. And she told me that she loves me. And, I'm sure, when she's ready, that she'll give me the whole story. If there is a story. And, when I'm uncomfortable about something, we'll talk it out, the way that we talked about the kiss." Emily looked at Spencer to try to read her reaction, but all that she saw was deep contemplation. "I don't know. Am I just stupid?" Spencer shook her head. "Naïve?"

"Maybe. But, when it comes to love, we have to be trusting and naïve, on a certain level. Even stupid, sometimes. Otherwise, no one would ever get together. It's always a risk. But I think that it's a safe risk, in this case."

Spencer gave Emily a hug. Emily was relieved, feeling that she had given Spencer a plausible explanation for the fact that she wasn't suspicious about Paige anymore, and that she had done so without compromising Paige's privacy. Of course, it was never easy for her to lie to her best friends, but this was no ordinary situation.

* * *

 **13 novembre 2015: Mes pensées et mes prières sont avec le peuple de France. J'espère que mes lecteurs français sont en sécurité.**


	14. The Secret Rage of Emily Fields

Emily sat in the corner of her window seat with her arms folded across her chest, glaring at Hanna. Hanna was using every trick in her arsenal - puppy-dog eyes, inappropriate jokes, wacky dancing - to try to get Emily over her anger.

Emily just rolled her eyes and glared in silence.

When Emily got mad - really mad - she got silent. She stopped screaming and acting out. She just put up a wall of stony, impenetrable silence. The wall wasn't merely defensive. It had the effect of breaking down the other person's resistance. No one wanted to see Emily Fields like that.

Hanna sat down in the window seat, earning an icy glare from Emily that had her quickly scrambling up to her feet again. "Look, Emily," she said in surrender, "I'm sorry, okay? What can I do to get back to being friends again?"

Emily just looked away and shook her head.

"What do you want me to say? That I should've told you? Tricia's the one who..."

"Don't you dare try to make this about Tricia! Her _life_ was on the line, Hanna!"

"Don't you think I know that? That's why I kept her secret!"

Emily scoffed, looking away from Hanna's face. "I get to be mad at you," she said.

"You're right," Hanna said, daring to sit next to Emily again. She put her hand on Emily's shoulder, but Emily shrugged it away. "You can be mad at me, Em. But it wasn't my place to tell you, especially when Tricia begged me to keep her safe. But I was still looking out for you. Remember when you thought that she was two-timing you? I convinced you to stick it out, and wait for the truth to come out?"

"Ugh! I know!" Emily whined. "I know why you did it. But I just need to be mad, Hanna. And I can't be mad at Tricia!"

"I think you just don't want to admit that you _are_ mad at Tricia."

Emily stood up and began pacing, shaking her head. "No," she said firmly. "This wasn't her fault. There was nothing that she could do."

"You can't just decide not to feel what you're feeling, Emily. You can just deny it, but that's not going to make anything better."

"So what am I supposed to do, Hanna? Tell Paige that I'm mad at her for protecting herself - and her family - and me?"

Hanna just shrugged, letting Emily know that that was exactly what she needed to do."

"I told her that it was okay. That we were okay. She was so afraid that I was going to break up with her. Now, I'm supposed to say, 'Actually, it's not okay?'"

"Emily, you have to be honest with her about what you're feeling. Otherwise, those feelings are just going to grow, and she's not going to know why you're upset, and you'll keep denying it. I mean, aren't you upset with her about not being honest with you?"

"Yes, Hanna, but I get why..."

"So, don't you think that _you_ need to be honest with her?"

* * *

Emily wasn't as talkative as she usually was as she and Paige walked arm in arm on the way back to Emily's house after her shift. Paige sensed that something was wrong, but she hesitated to bring it up. Finally, she rubbed shoulders with Emily and leaned in, asking, "You okay?"

Emily smiled slightly and shook her head. "I had a long talk with Hanna."

"Oh." Paige didn't have to ask what they had talked about. She stopped and turned to face Emily, holding both of her hands. "Emily, I'm sorry that I put her in that position."

Emily shook her head. "I understand why you did. And I don't blame you. Or Hanna. I've been going over and over it in my head, trying to think what I would have done, or what I would've wanted you to do, and I understand."

"But?"

"But I'm still mad." Emily looked Paige in the eyes, and then looked down at the ground. "At you."

Paige's shoulders fell at those words.

"I shouldn't be, Tricia, and I wish that I wasn't." Emily sighed. "But I am. And I don't know what to do about it."

Paige nodded her head. "I'm sorry," she said softly. Emily shook her head, but Paige cut her off before she could say that it wasn't Paige's fault. "I hated lying to you, Emily. Especially after I found out about Maya. And I know that it's not the same," she interjected, before Emily could say that it wasn't.

Paige continued, "I wanted to tell you. I wanted to tell my parents. I kept getting into fights with them over stupid shit, just because I was so frustrated. And I should've just done it sooner. I don't know why I didn't. I guess I was afraid that you would think that I wasn't worth it." Emily touched Paige's cheek when she heard those words. "But after that swim meet - when I couldn't even kiss you, I just got so angry. Angry that I was with you - this beautiful, perfect woman, and I couldn't even celebrate with you. I was angry with my Dad for turning those criminals in, and for telling the caseworkers to come to the swim meet. I was just... Oooh!" Paige took a few deep breaths. "I'm just sorry, Emily. I should've told you sooner."

Emily took Paige's arm and started them walking again. "Okay," Emily said. "I'm glad that you told me all of that." After a pause, she added, "It feels better to know. Thank you."

"Are we okay?" Paige didn't look at Emily as she waited for the verdict.

"Paige, we were never not okay." Emily wasn't used to calling Paige by her original name. She knew that the name would stand out in Paige's ears, and she hoped that it would give more weight to her words. "I was mad, but it doesn't change the way that I feel about you."

Paige nodded, still not looking at Emily. She didn't know how to bring up the subject that she had originally planned to talk to Emily about. She inhaled deeply and launched into it. "Emily, I have the world's shittiest timing, but..."

Emily steeled herself, wondering what else Paige could possibly throw at her.

Paige exhaled. "Well, we've never really been out, like, you know. On a date..."

"You're asking me out?"

"I know, Emily. The mood really sucks right now, but since we don't have school Friday, I convinced my Mom to let me borrow her car, and, I thought we could do something when you get finished with practice. I'm sorry. I would've just dropped it, but..." Paige chuckled nervously. "Well, I already got my Mom's car."

"Pa-tri-cia..." Emily playfully strung out each syllable, with a slight lilt in her voice. "You're asking me out on a date?" Emily was now facing Paige, smiling broadly, with both hands playing at the collar of Paige's shirt. Paige was smiling at the way that Emily had said her name and at the answer that she could tell was coming. "I would love that," Emily confirmed with a kiss. "What did you have in mind?"

"Dinner and a show?"

* * *

"Hanna, NO!" Emily said firmly as she held a hanger with a top up to her shoulders and another with a skirt down at her waist. Hanna curled her lip and shook her head, so Emily tossed the skirt aside and headed back to her closet to look for another option.

"Why _can't_ I come with you? Pleeeeeze?" Emily emerged with a pair of black skinny jeans, and Hanna gestured "so-so" with her hand.

"Because," Emily said, tossing the jeans into the "maybe" pile on her bed, "I don't need you staring at everything we do all night and going, 'Aw!' "

Hanna had to smile at that. She knew that it was exactly what would happen if she went with them. "I'll bring Caleb!" she shouted, in a "Eureka" moment. "He'll distract me so I don't overreact to you and Tricia!"

"Hanna..." Emily was pleading. She had enough stress without having to have this argument while she was trying to find the perfect first-date outfit. "Tricia asked me out! I can't just show up for our date dragging random people along!"

"I'm not _random people_ ," Hanna mocked. "I'm the reason that you two are together."

"Oh, really?"

Hanna just glared at Emily.

"Ugh! Whatever - even if that's true, you're not going with us, Hanna!"

"Facetime me!" Hanna said, clapping her hands at how brilliant the inspiration was. "Put it on Mute! Tricia doesn't have to know..."

* * *

"Wow! This place is... remote," Emily observed as Paige pulled into a parking space.

Paige hurried to the passenger side to get the door before Emily could do it herself. She held out her hand to help Emily out of her seat. Emily smiled at the gesture. "I hope you don't mind," Paige said, scrunching up her nose. "I'm not trying to hide you away." She held Emily's hand, as if to make the point that she wasn't ashamed to be seen in public together. "I started looking at places before I told my parents and the caseworkers about you. And this place just looked like fun, so?"

Emily bumped her shoulder with Paige's, to let her know that it was fine. "Dinner and a show?"

Paige opened the door and gestured toward a sign with the words, "Karaoke Tonight!"

Emily's eyes lit up. "We're doing karaoke? You sing?"

Paige laughed at the suggestion. "We're going to _watch_ karaoke. You know? Drunken karaoke - it doesn't get better than that!"

Emily pouted. "So, you're not going to get up and sing with me?"

"Emily, I don't sing!"

"Oh, come on, Tricia! Take a walk on the wild side!"

Paige shook her head, unable to get rid of the smile on her face. "You know, Em, you're right: this place _is_ too remote. Let's head back to Rosewood. I don't want you to think that I don't want to be seen with you!"

"You're not getting off that easily," Emily smirked, tightening her grip on Paige's arm.

* * *

The host led them to an out-of-the-way booth near the back. Paige waited for Emily to be seated, and then froze for a second. In the end, she sat next to Emily, rather than on the other side of the booth, bumping Emily's butt to get her to scoot over. "I learned that trick from Hanna," she boasted.

"Hanna..." Emily shook her head and smiled. "She really wanted me to bring her tonight."

Paige rolled her eyes. "I'll be sure to invite her next time," she said dripping with sarcasm.

Paige opened up her menu and Emily, rather than opening hers, leaned in over Paige's shoulder to look at hers. She put her hand on Paige's leg to steady herself. The move had the opposite effect on Paige, and she cleared her throat nervously.

Emily had worried that she was going too far before she leaned in the way she did. Part of her was still worried about how comfortable Paige was with being a couple in public. She tilted her head up to ask whether or not Paige was okay, but Paige misread the gesture and tilted her head down, meeting Emily's lips with a quick kiss. Emily giggled in genuine surprise, smiling as if it were their first kiss. She wanted to try it again, to be sure that it wasn't just her imagination.

It wasn't.

Those two kisses set the tone for the rest of the evening. They weren't making a public spectacle of themselves, but they stayed close throughout dinner, with touches on the shoulder, gentle squeezes on the knee, and some back-rubbing. They stopped short of feeding each other, although they did help themselves freely to what was on each other's plates.

* * *

Out of the corner of her eye, Paige could see Emily staring at her as they waited for their dessert to come. She knew that something was on Emily's mind, but, just as she was about to turn to ask what was wrong, Emily blindsided her with a kiss to the cheek. It was actually closer to her ear because of the way that her head was angled as she prepared to turn Emily's way, and it tickled a little. Paige tilted her head into her shoulder and laughed, poking Emily in the side to tickle her back. "What was that for?"

Emily shrugged. The night was going much better than she could have expected, and she just wanted to kiss Paige. "I'm just having so much fun tonight," she said. Paige reached her arm around Emily's shoulder and hugged her. She was having fun, too.

As they finished up their dessert, they heard the emcee in the ballroom announce the start of karaoke. Emily's eyes lit up and she put her hands on the table to stand up. "Come on! We want to get a good seat, so that we can scope out the competition."

"Oh, shoot!" Paige said with fake regret, "We forgot to sign up for a slot!"

"No we didn't, Silly!" Emily gushed. "I signed us up!"

"Huh? When?"

"When you were in the little girls' room."

Paige shook her head. "Emily, when I told you that I couldn't sing, I wasn't exaggerating or being modest."

"So?" Emily saw that Paige wasn't about to get up, so she shuffled over to the other side of the booth and out into the aisley to make her case. "You think any of these drunk rednecks can sing?"

"The difference being, we're not drunk!"

"Oh, so what? You don't think they're itching to see a couple of hot girls slutting it up on stage?"

Paige's mouth dropped open. Emily hadn't meant to say, "slutting it up," but, once it was out there, her competitive nature wouldn't let her take it back.

Paige nodded once, throwing her hands up in surrender. "Okay," she said evenly. "Let's go put on a show for some drunken rednecks!"

* * *

Paige's singing was as bad as advertised. Emily might have been able to do better, but she couldn't stop laughing at Paige's loud, unashamed, horrible attempt. Between the two of them, they got perhaps a third of the words to the song. It didn't help that the karaoke machine hadn't been updated since the early 2000s. Emily didn't recognize many of the songs, and she finally just picked the first song that she saw with "Woman" in the title, in a rush to get their slot locked in before Paige came back and stopped her. The song, "Man! I Feel Like a Woman," by Shania Twain, was one that neither of them had ever heard.

Their "slutting it up" turned out to be PG-13 at worst, but the audience seemed to enjoy it. They hooted and hollered and laughed right along with girls, as they bluffed their way through.

Of course, they didn't come close to winning any awards – not even the one for most outrageous act. But that wasn't the point. They had shared a common experience; one of those touchstones to a relationship that they would always be able to look back on. Individually, they could be shy and insecure, but, together, they were bold.

* * *

They pretty much skipped through the parking lot out to the car, holding hands and swinging their arms between them. Paige closed the passenger-side door with a flourish. Before they put on their seatbelts, they sat silent for a moment before they burst into spontaneous, simultaneous laughter. And before they knew what was happening, they were kissing. Their shenanigans on the karaoke stage, PG-13 though they were, had gotten them riled up. The couldn't wait to be alone. Alone in a lot full of parked cars would do.

Emily shifted her hips when she felt a buzz in her pocket. She didn't interrupt the kiss, though. Paige did. "What time do you have to be home?"

When Paige asked, Emily pulled out her phone to check the time. Her mom had been texting her every two or three minutes for the past half hour or so. "Apparently, a half hour ago," Emily said, bursting into laughter. As if on cue, her phone buzzed again, with a new text from her mother. She tossed it over her shoulder into the back seat, shooting a goofy face at Paige. "Fuck it!"

She would be in trouble when she got home, and she would probably be grounded for the next week, but nights like that one didn't come along very often. She pulled Paige back in for some more kissing.

* * *

Paige gave Emily a quick kiss when she pulled into the driveway. She wanted to walk Emily to the door, but Emily thought better of it. That would just get both of them yelled at. Paige waited in the driveway as Emily let herself inside, turning to blow Paige a kiss as soon as she turned the door handle. Once she pushed open the door, the whole house lit up. Paige offered up a silent prayer for her before she backed the car out into the street.

When Paige got home, she took a scolding from her mom for staying out so late. "There'd better not be a scratch on my car," she added in conclusion.

"And we're checking the odometer!" her dad teased. "Thirty cents a mile!"

Paige took it all in stride. All she wanted was to get to her room and on her phone, to make sure that Emily was okay. She quickly took off her make-up, brushed her teeth, and got dressed for bed, so that her parents wouldn't reprimand her for staying up even later, before she lay face-down on the bed and fired off a text to Emily.

 **TriciaB: how'd it go? :(**

 **EmFields: ok. didn't take my phone away** [Emily added an emoji wiping its brow in relief]

 **EmFields: grounded 2 wks tho :'(**

 **TriciaB: so sry. u ok?**

Emily texted back a thumbs up, the letters "IFLaW," and a high five. Paige muttered, "IF LaW?" to herself and said the individual letters before she made the connection with the chorus that was still running through her head: "I Feel Like a Woman." The letters became a secret code for the two of them, a lifelong reminder of their first date.


	15. Unofficial

Coach Fulton called Emily into her office after practice. Fulton's eyes never gave anything away: Emily could have been called in because she had lost her anchor spot, or because she had gotten a scholarship offer.

Emily didn't think that she was in any kind of trouble. Her times were good, and she hadn't missed any meetings. Still, not knowing what was up, Emily was on edge the entire time she showered and got changed.

She stood in the doorway, fidgeting with the zipper on her hoodie, until Fulton gestured for her to take a seat. Her coach told her that there were scouts coming to the next meet. It was early in the season, so they were only expecting scouts from Pennsylvania, Delaware, and New Jersey, but Fulton mentioned that some Big 10 schools could be represented. She told Emily that she sent her times to all of the schools that had registered with Rosewood High to send scouts, so some of the scouts would be keeping an eye out for her. "Don't be nervous," she said, "but don't take the day off."

"Of course not, Coach."

Coach Fulton broke into a rare smile. "I know you won't," she said. Emily never did.

Coach Fulton stared at Emily for a while, not saying anything. Emily knew better than to ask whether or not they were finished, so she sat there, staring Fulton directly in the chin.

"So, what's different?" Fulton asked, toying with her pen between her two hands.

"Um... I'm..." Emily shifted uncomfortably in her chair. "Excuse me, Coach?"

"Your swimming's been off the charts this year. What changed? I want to bottle it up and give it to the rest of the team."

Emily smiled at the compliment, but the silence from her coach indicated that she was actually expecting an answer. Emily shrugged. "Well, I've really been training really hard..."

Fulton shook her head. "You've always trained really hard!"

Emily frowned, curling her lip as she tried to think. "I mean, I've been working out with my girlfriend, and she's been giving me some good tips..."

Fulton leaned forward in her chair. "Bradshaw?" Emily nodded, but before she could give an answer in words, she was startled back as Fulton clapped once and snorted. "I knew that girl was a swimmer! So why haven't you talked her into swimming for us?"

"Um." Emily began nervously twisting the strap of her gym bag. "She doesn't swim... I mean, she doesn't _swim_ swim. Like, not competitively." Emily took a breath to clear her head. She didn't want to put Paige in danger, or put her in a position where she would start getting pressure from Fulton. "She was a rescue swimmer, and she knew people who swam competitively in Nebraska." Emily shrugged. "So, she's just been giving me tips."

Fulton nodded her head, over and over, slowly. "You think that she might be willing to give the rest of the team some tips?"

Emily shrugged.

"Have her stop by and see me sometime."

"Okay, coach. I'll ask her."

* * *

Emily was late to her shift at the Brew after her talk with Fulton. Paige was already there, in her regular booth. She waved at Emily, and Emily tried not to look nervous. It would be a while before her break, and she didn't want Paige to be on edge, getting more and more nervous about what was wrong with Emily, by the time they finally had the opportunity to talk.

When it was finally time for her break, Emily sat down with Paige, setting her sandwich and beverage down on the table and leaning back in the chair. She swept her hand through her hair and pushed it back over her head. She picked up the sandwich and set it back down, sighing, and idly drumming her fingers against the tabletop. _So much for not worrying Paige._

Paige knew that Emily had met with Coach Fulton after practice. Emily had texted her, once Fulton asked her to stay, but she never updated her on the outcome. Paige grabbed Emily's hands, both to stop the drumming and to calm her. She was trying to be just comforting enough without seeming unsympathetic.

Emily told Paige what Fulton had said about the scouts, and Paige went up, enthusiastically, for a high-five. Emily managed a smile, but it was obvious that there was more to this story.

"So, what's the bad news?"

"So, Fulton asked me what was different, and I said that I've been working really hard, and she said, no, you always work hard, so I tried to think, but I was really nervous, and I just said my girlfriend's been helping me, and I know that it was a stupid thing to tell her, and I'm not supposed to tell anyone that you used to swim, but it just came out..."

The pace of Emily's speech got faster and faster the longer that she babbled on. At the end, she was clinging to Paige's hands, her head down as she glanced up to see how Paige had taken the news. Paige was still smiling. Emily took a little comfort in that.

Paige tilted her head and leaned in a bit closer. "Your _girlfriend_?"

 _Oh shit!_ Emily was so worried about blowing Paige's cover that she hadn't even thought about that. They weren't official; they had never even talked about it.

The next thing Emily knew, Paige had her hand up again, going for another high five.

"You're not mad?"

"I'm not mad that we're, apparently, girlfriends now?"

"Not mad that I called you my girlfriend… and that I told Coach all that other stuff."

"Em, you could tell her that I'm an axe-murderer, if it means that I get to be your girlfriend!"

Emily chuckled in relief. "She asked why I haven't convinced you to join the team, and I told her that you don't swim competitively." Paige nodded. "So, she asked whether or not you could give the team some tips... You know, the way that you helped me?" Emily looked away. "I kind of told her that you'd come talk to her."

Paige shrugged, unaffected. "Okay!" She was smiling, and she sounded enthusiastic. Emily finally allowed herself to relax fully.

* * *

Before school the next morning, Emily walked Paige to Fulton's office. She gave her a hand-squeeze and a quick kiss before she turned and walked away, to get changed for some laps. "Bye, Girlfriend," Paige teased as Emily walked away, and Emily rolled her eyes, smiling. She really liked the sound of it.

Fulton gestured to the seat, and Paige sat down. "Emily tells me that you're the secret of her success."

Paige laughed. "I wouldn't even begin to claim that. Emily would be a success whether or not I was involved."

Fulton chuckled a couple of times. "I could say the exact same thing," she admitted. "But you've helped her reach a higher level." Paige nodded in thanks for the compliment. Fulton leaned forward. "So, why aren't _you_ swimming for me?"

Paige threw her head back and sighed. She was about to answer when Fulton cut in again. "And don't tell me that you're not _that_ kind of swimmer. Because, with your knowledge, I could make you into _that_ kind of swimmer."

Paige put her hands up, conceding the point. She told Fulton about her course load and her goals for college. "So, granted, I could probably learn how to swim competitively, but I couldn't do it well, and, at the same time, keep up with my academics the way that I need to."

Fulton nodded. "One or the other but not both, in other words." Paige nodded. "Well, that's wise. It's good to know your limits. But I'll ask you this: Do you think that you could spare an extra hour a week to work with some of my swimmers? Maybe a few minutes a day, a couple of days a week? Like an unofficial student coach?"

"Unofficial?"

"That's the word that we use for unpaid." Fulton winked, and Paige laughed. "But it would mean that it's less formal. You have a test to study for, you skip practice. No problem."

"I mean, it sounds like something that I'd enjoy, but I would have to think it over..."

"Absolutely! Talk it over with your parents, your teachers, your faculty adviser..."

 _My caseworkers_... Paige thought.

* * *

And, so it was that Paige became an unofficial student coach. She spent a couple of days just observing, learning how the coaches took their swimmers through practice. Of course, Paige was familiar with the drills and schedules, but she couldn't make that too obvious.

She worked one-on-one with some of the younger swimmers and served as an extra set of eyes to help diagnose some tendencies in the older swimmers - tendencies that may have been small, but that could end up costing precious milliseconds in a tight race.

Paige was having the time of her life. Even when she swam back in Nebraska, she always thought about the possibility of coaching, knowing that her days of swimming competitively would come to an end eventually, and wanting to have some sort of on-going connection to the water.

The fact that she got to see Emily almost every day was a bonus.

And, there was a seat for her on the team bus, whenever she wanted it. Hanna, Spencer, and Aria usually drove to the away meets, but riding on the team bus gave Paige the opportunity to be with Emily for the whole trip.

She may have been unofficial, but the team adopted her as their own, even adding a verse about her to one of the endless songs that they sang to kill time on long trips.

The first time that Sydney Driscoll sang the new verse, " _I know a girl whose name is Tricia/Em has to win so she can kiss ya_ ," a few heads whipped around, and Paige shrank down in her seat. Apparently, the story of the non-kiss after the first meet had been shared with more than just the trio of Emily's friends who were making the trip in Spencer's car. Emily wrapped her arms around Paige's head and pulled her in, as if she were shielding her child away from the paparazzi, with a sympathetic, "Aw!" Sydney echoed that "Aw," and, from then on, whenever the team sang the Tricia Bradshaw verse, the whole bus chorused, "Aw!" at the end.

Paige was really tempted to start riding to the away meets in Spencer's car.


	16. Celebrate!

Paige got up from her table at The Brew still holding Emily's hand. She didn't want to leave, but she had to get over to Spencer's, to study for midterms. So, she held onto Emily's hand for as long as she could, until the distance between them was longer than their arms could cover.

Hanna was smiling at the scene as though it were taking place on a cheesy video rather than in real life. When Paige finally turned her back and stepped outside of the café, and Emily's attention returned to the table, Hanna rubbed Emily's arm, celebrating the tender moment with her. "So, what are you guys doing next week?" she asked, her excitement showing.

Emily shrugged. "The usual stuff, I guess."

"You're not going to celebrate?"

Emily looked confused.

"Em, it's her first birthday since you two were official!"

"What? It's her birthday? When?"

"Tuesday! She didn't tell you?"

"No! Wait, she told you?" Hanna dipped her head. "Geez, Hanna!" Emily was concerned. "Why would she tell you and not me?"

"She didn't… exactly… tell me, okay?"

"Hanna?"

"I have ways…" The look on Emily's face showed that she was tired of this game. "I may have... gone through her purse a bit, back when I thought that she was hiding something from us…"

"Hanna!"

"And, just to be fair, as you recall, she actually _was_ hiding something from us!"

"And you found that out by going through her purse?"

"No, but I did find out that Tuesday's her birthday, okay? God, Em! Focus!"

"I can't believe that she never mentioned it! I mean, this is huge! It's not just her first birthday since we've been together, but it's also her first birthday as Tricia Bradshaw! Maybe she doesn't want to think about it. Too many sad memories?"

"Then you've got to make it extra special Emily!"

"You think? She won't get mad?"

"No, it'll be perfect! And it'll be a _real_ surprise, because she doesn't know that you know that it's her birthday!"

Emily lowered her head closer to the tabletop, with a conspiratorial smile. "What can I do to make her birthday extra special?"

"Why don't you invite her to my place? My Mom's out of town, and I can sleepover at Aria's…"

"Hanna…"

"Tell her to come right in, 'cause we're studying…"

"Yeah. Because she'll believe that I'm studying with you!"

"And, when she gets inside, there'll be a huge gift bag, and you can pop out of it. Totally naked of course!"

"Hanna!"

"You guys can do it in my bed, as long as you change the sheets!"

"Hanna!" Emily rebuked with a sharp whisper.

"And tell me all about it!"

"Hanna!"

"What?" Hanna read the expression on Emily's face. "Oh my God! You've never?"

Emily shook her head sadly.

"But you want to?"

Emily shrugged.

"We're not at that point yet. We haven't been going out that long. I did even _know_ Tricia three months ago!"

"So? You know her now, and you know you want to..."

Emily's shoulders slumped. She _did_ want to. But she knew that they weren't ready. Watching her finger as she traced it across the table, she said "I do. But I'm not going to rush something that neither one is ready for. I'm not going to give in and do something because it feels good right now. Tricia and I have a chance for something genuine. We don't have to hurry. I can wait."

Hanna took hold of Emily's wrist and looked sincerely into her eyes. "Seriously, Em? You can't!" she said, matter-of-factly.

"Hanna!"

"Just kidding, just kidding!" Hanna bumped shoulders with Emily. "So, what _are_ you going to do for Tricia's birthday?"

* * *

Emily asked Spencer to set up a study date with Paige on Tuesday night. Spencer told her to let herself in, as she was going to be studying in her room and probably wouldn't hear the door. Paige knew what that meant: Spencer wouldn't want to interrupt her studying to come downstairs and get the door. She would rather leave it unlocked and risk having a homicidal maniac let himself in.

Paige knocked on the door before she let herself in, her Midwest politeness showing through. When she opened the door, Hanna, Caleb, Spencer, Toby, and Aria all yelled, "Surprise!"

Before Paige realized what was going on, Emily inched her way from behind the crowd, in a tight, short, off-the-shoulder purple dress, and put her arms around Paige's neck. "Happy birthday," she said softly, with a demure smile. Paige dropped her book bag to the floor and grabbed Emily, momentarily forgetting anything except Emily and that dress. They were brought back from the kiss that had hypnotized them when the rest of the group yelled out "Whooo!" Paige backed away, smiling sheepishly.

"This is amazing, guys," she said, dipping her head and shaking it in disbelief. "No one's ever done anything like this for me before."

"I hope it's okay?" Emily pleaded. "You never told us that it was your birthday…"

Paige chuckled. "It's fine. It's great. I didn't think that I'd be in the mood to celebrate, but this is perfect." Emily gave Paige's arm a squeeze. "So, how did you know?"

All eyes looked to Hanna.

"What?" Hanna said, feigning innocence. "I'm very perceptive! I pick up on things!"

"Yeah," Emily said under her breath, "especially when you're going through my girlfriend's purse!"

Paige's eyes grew wide, so Hanna felt the need to explain. "She wasn't your girlfriend back then, Em. And admit it, she was acting pretty sketchy!"

Emily was about to retort, but Paige raised her hands. "It's fine! Hanna gets a free pass, because this party is just what I needed!"

Paige clung to Emily for the duration of the party. If they weren't holding hands, she had her arm around Emily's waist or on her back. She just couldn't get over the fact that she had such a thoughtful girlfriend. She didn't want to let go.

As the party settled into its own rhythm, Emily led Paige out to the backyard and gave her a kiss. "Are you really all right with this?"

"I am. Seriously, Em. I can't thank you enough!"

They sat down on the steps by the deck, and Emily reached underneath the deck, where she had stashed her present. She looked on eagerly as Paige opened the card. The card was in the shape of the number 1, and was intended for a one-year-old child. Paige was puzzled. "Because it's your first birthday as Tricia," Emily explained. Paige hugged her and then started slowly, methodically unwrapping her gift. When she saw the gift, a DVD of _The Heart is a Lonely Hunter_ , she smiled and hugged Emily.

"It was the first thing that I thought of when I heard your real last name," Emily explained.

"Carson McCullers," Paige said, confirming that she got the reference.

"I wanted this birthday to have some connection with your original name," Emily explained. "But, I thought that the book would be too obvious, with the author's name on the front."

Paige hugged her again. "It's perfect."

"Plus, it's a great movie," Emily said, as if she had to justify the choice.

"I can't wait to watch it with you," Paige said with a warm smile. "Well, I can't wait to watch something other than 'Rudy' with you!"

Emily kissed Paige's cheek. "I'll let you get away with that, because it's your birthday."

Paige stood up and intertwined her fingers, stretching her arms out in front of her. "This is horrible, but I have to get home, soon. My parents have dinner and cake for me."

Emily stood up and nodded. "I understand." She was trying to hide her disappointment.

"Come with me?"

Emily sighed. "I don't want to crash your family time."

"Please?" Emily saw the look in Paige's eyes and realized that she wasn't just asking to be polite.

* * *

As Paige and Emily walked to Paige's house with their arms around each other's waists, Emily asked, "Why didn't you let anyone know that it was your birthday?" Paige just sighed. "You just didn't feel like celebrating?"

"I guess not," Paige said, trying not to get sad. "It's hard not to think about all of my old friends at times like this, you know?" Emily reached with her arm and rubbed Paige's stomach. "God," Paige continued, "You think you're over this crap, and it just comes crashing back." She reached up to swipe a tear away. Emily kissed her cheek.

"Do you want to be alone?" she asked apologetically.

Paige smiled. "I want to be with you."

Emily hugged her a little tighter. They walked in silence for a while before she spoke again. "Did your parents do that thing where, on your first birthday, you could have one guest, and two on your second, and so on?"

Paige chuckled. "That's a thing?"

"Yeah. It was a parenting thing, I guess. You never heard of that?"

"No." Paige smiled. "So, you're my one guest for my first Tricia birthday?"

Paige felt Emily shrug her shoulders, not wanting to admit that she had thought of something so sappy, and she gave her a squeeze.

* * *

"Well, _Emily_! How nice of you to come!" Claire McCullers smiled over at her husband when Paige opened the door and ushered Emily in. Claire was surprised to see Emily, because Paige had told them that she didn't feel like having any guests; that she just wanted to treat it like any other day. She and Nick were glad that Paige had changed her mind, but they didn't mention anything. They didn't want to embarrass their daughter or her girlfriend.

Nick set another plate at the table, and Emily apologized for not having brought anything. She was rubbing her arm self-consciously, suddenly feeling inadequate for having come empty handed and for the way that she was dressed - dressed for hanging with her girlfriend, not for dinner with the parents.

"Don't be silly," Nick said. With a huge smile, he hugged Emily from the side. "You brought yourself, and that's all that matters."

Nick was especially happy, knowing how rough things had been for his daughter. Despite what Paige had said about wanting to be alone, he was glad that she was spending her birthday with the girl who brought her so much joy.

* * *

After dinner, Nick and Claire trundled upstairs to their room to give the girls some space. Paige and Emily sat cuddled on the couch, where Emily leaned into Paige with her legs folded over, on top the cushions.

"So, now that you know all of my favorite foods, are you going to cook for me?"

Emily took a weary swat at Paige's chest. "I can't even think about food! I don't think that I'm ever going to need to eat again!" Paige hummed in agreement. "Can you cook like that?" Emily asked.

"I think that I got my cooking ability from my Dad."

"What's his cooking like?"

Paige laughed. "You do not want to know!"

There was a comfortable silence before Emily spoke again. "So, what did you wish for?"

Paige sighed. "Well, I guess I can tell you, since it won't come true anyway." she leaned her head back. "I just wished that I could go back to my old life. As if none of this ever happened."

"Oh." Emily gave herself a moment to process that wish. She knew how hard things were for Paige, and she couldn't imagine what Paige was going through. Still, _ouch_. Emily knew that it wasn't what Paige meant, but it still hurt her to think that Paige wanted to go back to her old life; a life without her.

Paige picked up on the silence and realized what she had said. "I didn't mean it like that, Em." Pointing between them, she explained, "I mean, I'm glad that this happened. It - all of this - was worth it, for what we have."

Emily shook her head, not looking up. "You don't have to say that, Tricia. I didn't take it the wrong way. I know how much it must suck to have to go through what you've been through."

"Yeah," Paige said, exhaling deeply, "it _does_ suck." Paige paused. "So why do I feel so happy?"

* * *

 **A/N - By the way, the talented** **subway20, who supplied the prompt for this story, also inspired the gift that Emily gave Paige. Paige gave Emily the book in the last chapter of the excellent, fic, "Comment Paige McCullers m'a sauvé la vie," which subway20 thankfully translated into English as "** **How Paige McCullers saved my life." I highly recommend both of them!**


	17. Thanksgiving

"So, should I be nervous?"

Emily laughed. "About meeting my Dad?" She laughed again. "He loves you already. He's been dying to meet you. _He's_ going to be the nervous one!"

Paige rolled her eyes at the ridiculousness of that prediction. "Yeah. I'm sure that's how it's going to go down."

Wayne Fields was coming home for Thanksgiving weekend. The plan was for Paige to come over for dinner the Friday after, and for Emily's family to have dinner with Paige and her parents on Saturday.

"Well, should _I_ be nervous about my parents meeting your parents?" Paige shook her head weakly, but it was obvious that there was more to the story. "Tricia…"

Paige exhaled. "It's nothing. It's just. Well, my parents are different, now, you know?" Emily rubbed Paige's back, empathetically. "I mean, it's nothing major. They've actually adjusted pretty well. It's not as if they're paranoid or bitter or anything. Just – you know, my parents were the kind of people who always had people over to the house. When I was a kid, ours was the house where all the other kids came to play, and, in high school, all of the swim team's parties were at our house. My Dad was constantly bringing colleagues home from work, you know the type?" Emily sort of nodded. She sort of got it. "Anyway, I think that it will be good for them to have company again. I just think that they really miss that part of their old lives."

Emily nodded, pulling Paige's head onto her shoulder. It was awkward, across the center console of Emily's car, but it was comforting nonetheless.

"Well, we should definitely have the swim team come over for the end of season party."

Paige straightened up in her seat and smiled. "You don't have to do that, Emily. I appreciate it, but…"

"What? It just makes sense! You're a part of the team, now, and you guys have that great pool!"

Paige shook her head. "Well, I know that my Mom would love that." She leaned over to kiss Emily. "Thanks, Em." Emily kept her hand on Paige's neck as they broke from the kiss, and she stroked her ear with her thumb. Paige sighed. "I guess I'd better get inside." With another kiss, she said, "Thanks for the ride."

Emily smiled. "Thanks for hanging out with me while I locked up!" Paige exited the car and went around to Emily's side for a final good-night kiss. "I'll see you on Friday. Happy Thanksgiving! Tell your parents I said Happy Thanksgiving!"

* * *

Paige showed up to Emily's house a few minutes fashionably late on Friday evening. She knew how hard Emily and her family had worked on decorating the house for Christmas and on the Thanksgiving dinner, and she didn't want to add stress by arriving too early. Wayne Fields greeted her when she rang the bell. "Hey, you must be Tricia! I'm Wayne," he said, taking away the suspense at what she should call him. His arms were out wide for a hug, so Paige let the paper shopping bag drop onto the porch and met his hug. When they released, he pointed at the bag and joked, "What'd you bring me?"

Paige picked the bag up and extended it with a flourish. "I brought pies! And, if Emily has told you anything about my cooking, don't worry. My Mom made these!"

Wayne took the bag from her hands and ushered her inside. "Pam! Emily's girlfriend is here, and she brought baked goods!"

Pam and Emily both leaned out of the kitchen at the same time. Pam said hi. Emily waved.

Wayne took Paige's coat and led her to the living room. "If you don't mind," Paige said, "I'm just going to poke my head into the kitchen, to see whether or not they need any help."

"Oh, sure, sure!" Wayne followed her there. "They've already kicked me out, but maybe you'll have better luck!"

Paige greeted Emily with a quick kiss. Emily held her hands out at her side, her arms bent at the elbows, to avoid getting any flour on Paige's sweater.

"Tricia, Honey, why don't you and my husband get the table set? Wayne, show Tricia where everything is." Pam's strategy was to keep Wayne out of the kitchen and to give him the chance to talk with Paige as he had been dying to. Wayne Fields was a competent cook. They just didn't need two cooks in the kitchen. Emily was happy to defer to her mom in the kitchen, but Wayne was a take-charge kind of guy. The kitchen wasn't big enough for the two of them.

* * *

As they were eating, Pam eyed the empty tray of rolls, but it was just beyond her reach. Paige picked up on the look and grabbed the tray. "I'll go get some more," she announced, as she headed into the kitchen.

When she returned with the rolls and sat down, Wayne joked, "Boy, you are really on your 'first dinner with the parents' best-behavior, aren't you? So, when do I get to meet the _real_ you?"

Emily's eyes grew wide at this statement. "Dad!" she hissed under her breath, gesturing with her eyes toward Paige.

"Oh, Jeez! I didn't mean… Gosh - I'm sorry, Tricia!"

Paige put her hands up. "It's fine, really." She hadn't actually made that connection. She had been enjoying the meal, and had all but forgotten about her circumstances until Emily reacted to what Wayne said. Not that it was Emily's fault. Emily couldn't help herself for being protective, and Paige wouldn't have wanted her to try. This thing just had a way of inserting itself into every aspect of Paige's life. It got to be old rather quickly.

* * *

When dinner was over, Wayne got up and cleared the dishes. Paige jumped up to help. "This is the one time when they actually allow me in the kitchen," he explained to her, nudging her with his elbow.

"It must be hard being the only guy in the house," Paige remarked.

"Yeah, especially when I need to get into the bathroom, or we need to get on the road," Wayne deadpanned. "But, hey, what guy wouldn't want to be surrounded by two beautiful women? Or, _three_ tonight!" Wayne joked, giving Paige a friendly wink. Taking a serious tone he admitted, "The hard part, actually, is being in Texas. Or being deployed." Paige nodded sadly. "But, that's all coming to an end real soon, I hope!"

Once the dishes were taken care of, they settled down in front of the TV, not really watching the Christmas-romance movie that was playing in the background (although Pam shushed everyone from time to time, whenever a tender was being played out on the screen), but laughing and enjoying each other's company.

* * *

When the movie ended, Wayne and Pam headed upstairs to bed, and Paige and Emily stayed behind to talk.

"I'm really sorry about what my Dad said."

Paige smiled. She didn't think that she could convince Emily that she hadn't been bothered by it, so she just said, "Your dad's really great."

Emily reached her arms around Paige's waist and put her head on Paige's shoulder. "He really is." She kissed Paige on the cheek. "I'm glad that you two get along."

Paige couldn't help smiling. "You sound a little surprised."

Emily shrugged. "He hasn't really had the best track record with my girlfriends, if you know what I mean." Emily noticed Paige looking smug, so she added, "I guess he must be getting desperate for me to find someone. You know, so I'm not home all mopey on prom night." Emily looked down at Paige with a playful scowl, which Paige returned to her.

Paige sat up and asked, "Wait - did you just ask me to go to prom with you?" There was that smug look again. Emily just shrugged shyly. Paige leaned in and kissed her. "I would love that, Em!"

Paige let her head come to rest on Emily's shoulder, and Emily tilted her head on top of Paige's. The two of them sat quietly for a bit, enjoying the moment.

"I wish you didn't have to go home," Emily lamented, backing away from Paige slightly.

"I know, right?" Paige stood up and stretched, letting out a long yawn. She stumbled a bit from the sudden rush of blood, and Emily thinking that her girlfriend was on the verge of a food coma, worried that she would have trouble making it home. Paige assured her that she would be okay, and Emily walked her to the front door. They positioned themselves squarely under the mistletoe and took fullest advantage.

* * *

The following night, dinner with the McCullers family was off to a pretty good start. The families felt comfortable with each other, and Paige was animated, obviously enjoying seeing her parents around people again. Emily's eyes were fixed on Paige, enjoying the fact that Paige was so happy. Nick and Wayne were very different, but they were, in many ways, kindred spirits. And both were fiercely proud of and full of love for their daughters.

Claire was talking to Pam about how difficult it was dealing with children and their ups and downs every day, after years as a software engineer, where she only had to deal with predicable machines. They had a laugh, and, when the conversation paused, Pam asked, "What would you say has been the hardest part about all of this?"

Claire looked over at Nick, and then down at her hands, which she folded in her lap. "Oh, Christy, I'm so sorry." Pam reached over and squeezed Clair's forearm. Paige had a pretty good idea what the squeeze felt like. She had learned how to interpret the different combinations of squeezes and looks that Emily used to help communicate; varying the location and intensity of both the squeeze and the look to convey regret, joy, pride, sympathy, and a few other emotions.

"No," Claire said, covering Pam's hand with her own before Pam pulled it back. "Don't be. It actually helps to be able to talk about it. We really don't have anyone with whom we can talk about it."

"I suppose," Nick said, with a faraway look in his eye, "- and, as parents, you'll understand this - I suppose the hardest part is what I put Paige through. Everything changed for her; all of her plans, everything she knew – it was all snatched away in an instant." Nick still wasn't looking at anyone in particular, just staring into space, as he continued. "I've never for a second questioned whether or not I did the right thing. But I've never stopped wondering whether or not it was worth it for what it did to my daughter."

Paige had stopped eating – had stopped moving by this point. Emily was rubbing circles into her back, trying to get Paige to look at her. Paige had never heard her father say anything like that before. She wanted to tell him that it was okay – that _she_ was okay – that he had made the right choice. She wanted to tell him how proud she was of him. But she knew that she wouldn't be able to speak with that lump in her throat, and that, if she tried, her dad would feel guilty when he heard the tremble in her voice, thinking that she was trying to be brave for his sake, because he had really hurt her.

Emily squeezed Paige's hand, rubbing her shoulder, wishing that there were some way that she could transplant strength to her girlfriend.

Nick sighed deeply and pushed back from the table. "I'm sorry. Would you all, please, excuse me for just a minute?"

Nick stood up and headed toward the stairs to the basement. Paige got up immediately, without a word, and followed. Pam and Emily looked at each other helplessly. Pam looked at Wayne. Wayne looked at Emily. Emily looked at Pam. Pam looked at Claire. "I really wasn't thinking, Christy. I hope…"

Claire McCullers shook her head. "It's fine, really, Pam. They just need a moment."

* * *

Paige pushed the door to the basement open and called out to her dad before she started down the stairs. He was pacing back and forth in his man-cave, his arms folded, shaking his head and muttering. Paige sat down on the last two steps, supporting her chin between her balled-up hands. "Hey, Sport," Nick said, stopping in the spot where he turned around and met her eyes.

"Dad, I've never told you this before, but I'm really proud of what you did. And I'm proud that you're my dad." With that, Paige stood and gave her father a hug, which he gratefully accepted. Neither one was in a hurry to let go.

"I'm proud of you, too, Paige." _Paige._

"No, Dad. I really mean it. You could've kept quiet, and I probably never would have known what was going on. But you took a stand, even though you knew that it would turn our whole world upside down. And you taught me the most important lesson of my life by doing the right thing, even when you could've done the easy thing, and no one would've known."

Nick gave his daughter another hug. He breathed out deeply and laughed nervously. "Now, how do we go back to the table after an exit like that?"

Paige extended her elbow. "Arm in arm?"

* * *

When they got back to the table, before Pam could apologize yet again for her question, Paige, standing with her hands on her chair, gave a speech. "I just want to say publicly what I just told my Dad in private. I never second-guessed what he did, when he turned those guys in to the authorities. My parents have always taught me to do the right thing, and, when it came down to it, that's what my Dad did. Even though he could've justified himself if he had kept quiet. You don't just teach by what you say, you teach by who you are, and I couldn't be any prouder of who my Dad is."

Nick squeezed Paige's hand and gave her a wink. He was smiling in pride, not at what his daughter had said, but at who she had become.

"I think that I speak for everyone," Wayne Fields boomed, "when I say that we're all proud of your dad, Paige."

Nick nodded his head and raised a glass in thanks. "So," he asked Wayne, wanting desperately to get the focus off of himself, "how much do all those Christmas lights set you back on your electric bill every year?"

"Chester!" Claire McCullers exclaimed with an embarrassed laugh.

Nick looked around at everybody, clueless as to what social convention he had violated. He finally shrugged it off. "Once an accountant, always an accountant, I suppose!"


	18. Pool Party and Paranoia

Paige was busy helping her mom tray up hors d'œuvres as Emily and Sydney shuttled them out to the tables inside the house and out by the pool, where, despite the crisp chill in the evening air, more and more of the girls on the team were gathering.

Paige had an unfading smile on her face from watching how energized and animated her mother was in the kitchen. It was almost like being with Claire McCullers again, back in Nebraska, before any of the nastiness had taken place.

"Okay, girls," Claire beamed as she handed off a couple of trays. "I can handle it from here! Thanks for all of your help - now, go enjoy your party!"

"Are you sure, Mom?" Paige wasn't just asking to be polite. She was really enjoying seeing her mother that way, and wouldn't have minded spending a little more time in the kitchen with her. Her mother hugged her around the shoulder and nodded. "You can help me later, when it's time to clean up after all these swimmers!"

Paige wandered around, inside the house and out, talking with a few members of the team and the staff as she looked for Emily. She found her talking with one of the freshmen and eased up behind her, her hand landing naturally around Emily's waist. Emily smiled at her for a second without missing a beat of her conversation. The freshman furrowed her brow a bit when she saw the way that Paige was holding Emily. Paige was taken aback by this. It was no secret that she and Emily were together. It surprised her that anyone - even among the freshmen - might not have known this or would have had a problem with it. After a moment, though, she recognized the freshman's response for what it was: jealousy.

Emily had always treated the girl like a little sister - the way that she did with most of the younger members of the team. It didn't surprise Paige that one of them had fallen under the spell of the old Emily Fields charm. She found it amusing. But she found herself acting possessive and staking her claim: shuffling just slightly closer to Emily, interlacing their fingers, smiling a lot and peppering her statements with kisses on the cheek from time to time. Emily was enjoying the affection, seeming to be totally oblivious to the drama between her two conversation-companions.

After a bit, the freshman had enough of the game and excused herself, landing her fingers on Emily's forearm as she leaned in for a hug.

"So," Emily teased once the girl was out of earshot, "you chased her off. You successfully defended your territory. Good for you!" She laughed lightly, amused by the scene in which she had been an unwitting participant.

"What do you mean?" Paige hoped that her nervous smile would come off as oblivious, or, at least, innocent.

Emily put her hand on Paige's cheek and gave her a kiss. "You are so cute when you're overprotective."

Paige laughed and laced their hands together again as they headed off to greet more of the team.

* * *

"Happy Holidays, Fields!" Coach Fulton bellowed, pulling her star swimmer in for a bear hug. "Enjoy your time off with your family. Are you heading anywhere?"

"No," Emily said, shaking her head and looking at Paige for support. Even after four seasons of swimming for her, Emily still didn't feel quite comfortable around her coach. "We're going to be in Rosewood the whole time."

"Well, good. Get some rest... but don't slack off on the training, okay?" she was half joking, but the bony finger that she pointed in Emily's face was still a bit intimidating.

"I'll stay on her, Coach," Paige offered cheerily.

Coach Fulton laughed a deep, throaty laugh for several seconds before she walked away, muttering, "I bet you will, Bradshaw," under her breath.

"Tricia!" Emily said, wide-eyed, when Fulton was out of range. She couldn't believe that Paige had actually used those words.

"What? I'm serious, Emily!" Paige's voice was low and husky as she continued, staring directly into Emily's eyes, from point-blank range. "I'm willing to go the distance! I'll put you through the paces, plumbing the depths, straining to get every last ounce of commitment out of you."

Emily kissed Paige's lips to stop her from talking. "You either need to shut up right now or sneak me up to your room right now," she breathed, tickling her fingertips across the back of Paige's neck, causing Paige's stomach to dip. Emily smirked, seeing Paige squirm. Paige wasn't the only one who could play dirty.

* * *

As the party started to wind down, Paige and Emily started carrying the trays back to the kitchen, wrapping things up and tossing the trash away. Claire McCullers thanked them but told them, yawning, that they didn't need to bother, and that she would take care of it.

The girls were insistent, though. Claire was obviously exhausted, and she had been working all night - even though she claimed that the work energized her. Eventually, they convinced her to take a little break while the rest of the guests filtered out.

Claire sat in the overstuffed chair in the living room, reclining it so that she could put her feet up. She was asleep in a matter of seconds.

It took Paige and Emily a little while to finish cleaning the kitchen - about twice as long as it should have taken them - because they were fooling around the whole time; splashing each other, snapping towels at each other's butts, finding subtle ways to touch each other, sometimes in places and ways that were not so innocent.

They had reached that uneasy stage of their relationship where their bodies had run ahead of where their minds were, and the sexual tension was overwhelming. Their bodies were screaming one thing, while their good sense whispered the opposite. They both knew that they weren't going to give in to the craving of their bodies just yet. They were just letting off a bit of steam, relieving a bit of pressure before they exploded.

When the dishes were all in the dishwasher and everything else was wiped down and put away, Paige led Emily stealthily up the stairs, past a still-sleeping Claire McCullers, and past her dad, who, alone in the master bedroom, was probably also long asleep.

* * *

Paige sat down on her bed and pulled Emily down with her. In no time, their lips were working together and their kisses were becoming deeper and more desperate. Paige kept pulling Emily closer and closer, repeatedly shushing Emily - and herself - fearful of her father, who might actually have been awake down the hall, or who, in any event, could've awakened at anytime. But Paige's hormones got the best of her, and, in a moment of abandon, her hands found their way under Emily's top and onto her breasts. Emily squeezed her legs tight as she grabbed a tight handful of Paige's hair, separating their lips to let a loud moan escape. Right at that moment, something bumped down the hall, startling them into neutral corners on the edge of the bed. They quickly smoothed their clothes back into place, and both of them giggled uncontrollably, realizing that the sound was nothing - probably the house shifting - but knowing that the moment had shifted with it. Deep down, they realized that it was for the best. The Universe had kept them from rushing too far too fast.

"You owe me a feel!" Emily whispered, pretending to be annoyed as she pointed with both fingers at Paige's chest.

Paige caught Emily's hands and pressed them against her breasts, biting her lip in a vain attempt to muffle her reaction. She knew, when she copped the feel for Emily, that it was going to feel good. In fact, how good it would feel was the reason that she did it. Evening the score for Emily was just an excuse. But Paige had no idea just _how_ good it would feel. It was more than good: It felt complete, correct, appropriate; _hallowed._ Paige leaned in to whisper in Emily's ear, " _IFLaW_." She really did.

She followed their code word with a warm, wet kiss and a gentle bite on the lobe. Emily gasped and jumped to her feet as if she had sat on top of a scorpion. "I'd _really_ better get going," she said with sadness and urgency.

* * *

"Oh, God, Spencer! I can't believe that you're still on this!"

"Aria, you have to admit: Something doesn't add up!"

"So, why don't you just talk to Tricia about it instead of sneaking around like this?"

"Because I don't want to let her know that I'm suspicious! She'll shut me out - and, even worse, she'll tell Emily. And you know that Emily doesn't want to hear anything bad about her girlfriend!" Spencer added under her breath, "Not making _that_ mistake again!"

"Spencer, you study with Tricia every day. You don't think that she's already suspicious?"

"No, Aria, because we _study_ together! It's not the social gossip hour, or whatever, that happens when you and Emily 'study' together!" Aria glared at Spencer, and Spencer remembered that she was trying to get Aria on her side. She softened her gaze and relaxed her shoulders, pleading.

"Well, maybe you should check with Hanna? After all, she was the one who found out about the politician..."

" _Alleged_ politician!" Spencer interrupted. "And I can't talk to Hanna. She's put a wall up around Tricia. I don't know what her game is, but they're _all_ in on it!"

"Okay, Spencer, don't you think that you're, maybe, a little... you know... the p-word?"

Spencer's head snapped back in confusion as she tried to work out what the p-word was. _Prudent? Psycho? Pissy? PMS-ed?_

Once Aira picked up on the fact that Spencer was silently going through a list of words in her head, she gave her the answer. "Paranoid, Spence. Don't you think that you're being a little paranoid?"

"Aria!" Spencer whined.

Aria shrugged. It was the truth, as she saw it, so she wasn't just going to take it back.

"Can't you just leave it?" Aria squeezed Spencer's shoulder. "You may not like Tricia, but Emily obviously does..."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Who says I don't like Tricia? I may not _trust_ her..."

"But Emily obviously does..."

"Emily obviously has a blind spot!" Aria's skepticism was making Spencer crazy.

Aria leaned her head in, in concern. Up until that point, her concern had been for Spencer's mental state. When Spencer got on a crusade like this, it led to unhealthy behavior. It started with staying up late, obsessively pursuing her suspicions, and eventually grew into self-medicating, in the worst sense of the word.

But when Spencer mentioned the blind spot, Aria started to think of the possible consequences, if Spencer was actually onto something about Paige. "You think that Tricia is going to hurt Emily?"

"Ugh... I don't know. No, I guess. I don't honestly think that Tricia is out to hurt Emily."

"Then why are you so gung ho about this?"

"Because it's a loose end! Because it doesn't add up, and I can't stand not being able to make sense out of things!"

Aria sighed. She knew Spencer. She understood why this would bother her so much.

"Can't you just humor me, Aria?" Spencer was pleading and vulnerable, in a way that Aria rarely saw her. "I promise that I won't make you go all Nancy Drew. I just need somebody to bounce these things off of..."

Aria closed her eyes in thought. This really seemed like a bad idea, and it would pit her against Emily - and Paige. She would have to keep Spencer's confidence at their expense, something that she was loath to do. In the end, she decided that she was on-board, as much to keep an eye on Spencer as for any other reason.

"Fine, whatever," she answered, weakly. "Go, Team Sparia."

* * *

So, let's review: Emily and Hanna know Paige's secret but are playing along with Spencer, to limit any damage that she might do with her investigation. Aria doesn't know Paige's secret, but she's also playing along, to keep Spencer reined in. And Spencer doesn't know Paige's secret - but does she really not know that the others are trying to control her?


	19. Stanford and Scholarships

"I wish that we'd found out about this sooner."

"About lying here like this?"

Emily nodded into Paige's chest. "It's so relaxing, just watching the stars." Emily felt Paige shift a bit underneath her, and she lifted her body up. "I'm not squishing you, am I?"

"Oh, _please_!" Emily wasn't sure whether Paige's dismissive tone was supposed to mean that she wasn't heavy or that Paige was strong. Paige certainly felt strong to her as she pulled her body back into place. "I like feeling you on top of me."

Emily laughed that delicate, angelic laugh that always made Paige's heart flutter. "Don't let Hanna hear you say that!"

Paige grinned. "I guess it didn't come out right, did it?"

"It came out _fine_ ," Emily assured her, with a kiss. She sighed and began playing with Paige's hair. "We're not going to have too many more nights like this, are we?"

"We're not?"

"I just mean that winter's going to be here pretty soon, you know."

"Yeah," Paige said sadly. "But spring will be here before we know it."

That was supposed to cheer Emily up, but she didn't want to think about it. Spring. Graduation. And who knew where she and all of her friends would be next year. "I just wish that this autumn could last forever. I just wish that we could stay here forever."

Paige was going to say something about how the best was yet to come for them, but she took a deep, sad breath instead. "Yeah, you know? I wish that we could, too."

They lay in silence, enjoying the slight breeze, the occasional whoosh of a car driving past in front of the house, the canopy of stars, and the contact with each other. The rhythm of Paige's heart was having a hypnotic effect on Emily. Her eyes closed and her fingers stopped moving over Paige's collarbone, where her rhythmic stroking had been sending tingles of electricity to the base of Paige's spine. Paige smiled to herself and pressed a kiss on the top of Emily's head when she realized that Emily had drifted off to sleep.

A few moments later, Emily jerked awake. She looked at Paige, confused for a second before she came to herself. "Don't let me fall asleep," she said with a yawn. "I don't want to waste this time with you by falling asleep."

Paige smiled. "But I love it when you fall asleep in my arms." Her voice was a low rumble, and it sounded like sex. Emily could feel the words vibrating their way up from Paige's diaphragm. She moved from her perch under Paige's arm and straddled her, grabbing fistfuls of Paige's shirt as she leaned in to kiss her needily. The kisses were slow and deep, and they began melting into a single, enduring, passionate kiss. Only when Emily felt Paige's hips undulating beneath her did she realize that she had been rolling her hips onto Paige. She pulled back with a gasp. Paige understood. They needed to stop while they still could, before they did something that neither of them was ready for, outside, practically in public, and well within view of the kitchen window.

Emily rolled back to Paige's side. "Talk to me," she commanded, "about something boring!"

"Something boring?" Paige said contemplatively.

"And don't use that sex-voice!" Emily moved to put some separation between their bodies. It was hard enough having to hear the sex-voice without having to feel it vibrating against her with every syllable that Paige unleashed.

Paige wrinkled her brow and mouthed the words, "Sex-voice?" Emily gave her a glare. Paige knew exactly what she had been doing to her. "Okay, but, then you can't give me that sex-glare!" As soon as Paige said the words, she started giggling. It was contagious, and it turned out to be just what they needed to break the spell that they had been under.

"Do you know where you're going to go next year?" Paige offered, trying to come up with a topic to keep Emily awake.

Emily whined, "Ohhhh – don't make me think about it!"

Paige shrugged. "So what do you want to talk about, then?"

Emily tried to think of something – anything – to talk about other than what would happen after they graduated. "Danby," she finally sighed, having given up on finding a new topic.

"Danby? Huh…"

"And what's wrong with Danby?" Emily was trying not to be hurt by Paige's reaction.

"Oh, nothing, nothing, believe me. Just – you know. You're going to get offers from the top programs – Michigan, Ohio State, Cal, Stanford..."

"Well, I don't want to get my hopes up."

"Believe me, Emily. Your swimming is on another level. You're going to have your choice of schools!"

"Yeah?" Emily asked, although she really didn't believe it. She stole a quick, sideways glance at Paige before she mustered up the courage to ask the question that had been on her mind; the only reason that she was reluctant to dream about the future. "Would you follow me to Stanford?" Her voice was small and almost apologetic. She hadn't known Paige long enough to ask something like that of her.

"I wish," Paige said sadly. "I don't see how I'd be able to afford Stanford!"

"But, you're a genius, Tricia! You'll get all kinds of academic scholarships!"

Paige scoffed. "The funny thing about academic scholarships. The businesses who give them want publicity. They want your face all over their brochures and reports, and in the newspapers."

"Oh." Emily felt guilty. "I'm so sorry," she said softly. "I didn't even think…"

"You don't have to apologize, Em. It's just the way that life is."

Emily shook her head remorsefully. "I should've been more sensitive."

"It's okay," Paige said. She smoothed her hand over Emily's hair. "Believe me, I'm glad that you don't think about it. You shouldn't have to worry about this shit!"

Emily sat up to look Paige in the eye. "But I _want_ to worry about it, Tricia, because _you_ have to worry about it. And I love you." Emily knew that, if she and Paige were to have a life together, this "shit" would be a huge part of it.

Paige lifted her head and gave Emily a gentle kiss, telling her that she loved her, too.

"I just get worried, you know? That we'll end up on opposite sides of the country and lose each other."

"Whatever happens, Emily, we'll be together."

"How can you be so sure?" Emily could easily have let her tears start to fall, but she held them back.

Paige stood up, taking Emily's hands to pull her up. "I won't let anything come between us," she said confidently. Emily reached behind Paige's back and just held her, drinking in the moment and enjoying the feeling of being in the arms of the one whom she loved, and holding the one whom she loved in her arms. Finally, reluctantly, she pulled away. "I'd better get home," she said. "It's late."

"Emily," Paige said, using the hand that she was still holding to get Emily to stop in her tracks and turn around. "We're going to have to talk about it, eventually."

Emily didn't say anything. She just walked up to Paige and nodded her head sadly as she hugged her. Her hands were looped under Paige's arms, and she could feel the the muscles of Paige's shoulders flex as Paige pulled her in tighter.

* * *

Paige was nervous as she sat down to dinner. She was usually quiet at dinner time, and the thought of breaking her customary silence for what she needed to discuss made her even more nervous. She didn't notice the knowing looks that her parents had been exchanging as they sat, honoring her silence. They could tell that something was going through Paige's head, and they were giving her space to come up with a way to express it.

Paige finished the food that she was chewing and took a sip of her water. Then another. Then another. Each time, she was careful to place her water glass in precisely the right spot, and to align it so that the _fleur de lys_ design was centered across with the line on her placemat that her knife was straddling.

"How's that water, Kiddo?" Nick was only slightly impatient, and even though he was trying to use humor to move the conversation along, his impatience was evident. Claire rebuked him with a withering glare.

Paige laughed nervously. Her dad's remark had given her just the push that she needed to proceed with her question, and she dove right in, before she had the chance lose her nerve. "Mom, Dad, talk to me about college... I mean, we never - I mean, we _need_ to talk about college."

"Okay," Nick said, keeping his tone even, although Paige's nervous outburst had him worried. Paige knew how important a college education was. They had instilled that into her from her earliest days. Nick had a suspicion that she was going to try to convince them that she wasn't the college type; that she would be better off living in a commune in New Mexico, or something.

Claire smiled and patted Paige's hand.

"Okay." Paige took her time to avoid slip-ups. "So, I know that the plan was always for me to get a swimming scholarship, so that I could afford to go to a good school." Paige looked at her parents, and they nodded. "So, now that swimming's out of the picture, what are my options?" Paige flipped her fork over on the placemat, looking at it, rather than her parents.

"Patricia, you're still going to college." Nick was trying to sound firm, not upset.

"I know that, Dad. But what if I still wanted to go to an elite college?"

"Then that's what we want, too, Tricia," Claire said reassuringly. "You know that your father and I want what's best for you, and whatever college you think is right for you, we'll give very serious consideration to. That doesn't mean that we won't try to point out other options..."

Paige was getting frustrated. Neither one of her parents was getting the point that she was trying to make. "But what if I wanted to go to Stanford?"

"Absolutely!" Nick said, at the same time that Claire said, "Stanford is a great school."

"But it's expensive!" Paige almost yelled in her frustration. "And I can't get any scholarships without drawing attention to our situation."

"Oh," Claire said softly. She wiped her mouth with her napkin and started lining up her silverware. Paige had always thought that she was like her father, but, watching her mother, she realized where she had picked up some of her nervous habits.

Nick took off his glasses and rubbed his eyes. Paige knew what was coming. She jumped right to her hold card. "Is there any way that you could get a loan? Like a second mortgage? I could get a job to help with the payments, and, once I graduate, I could pay you back on the same schedule as I pay my student loans!"

It hurt Nick and Claire to see their daughter like this. Claire looked at Nick, pleading, and Nick nodded his head.

"Don't worry about the money," Claire said. "That won't be a problem."

Although Nick had only reported his clients to the authorities because of their crooked books, it turned out that the FBI had been trying to get evidence against them for a few years. There was a substantial reward, which the people who were familiar with their misdeeds were too intimidated to try to collect. Even though that wasn't why Nick had turned them in, the government was more than happy to hand over the reward.

"How come I never heard about this reward?"

"Honey," Claire said gently, "the less you know about some of these things, the better." Paige nodded. She wasn't insulted by the statement, as if her parents were treating her like a child. From the few facts that she was aware of, she knew that she didn't want the whole story.

When Paige in sixth grade, her father called her out to the back yard to see a rattlesnake that he had killed by cutting off its head with a hoe. Paige had a love/hate relationship with gross things; she cringed at the sight of them, but she always wanted to see them. As Nick calmly cut the snake into pieces with is hoe, turning the dirt from the garden over on top of the pieces, he told Paige, "Don't tell your mother about this. She'll be too afraid to come out here and work anymore." Inside, Paige was thinking, _"Then, why did you tell me?"_ That was how she felt about her father's ordeal. She didn't mind being kept in the dark, if it meant that she would be less paralyzed by fear.

"They kept it out of the papers," Nick explained. "That kind of publicity would just make our lives harder. And they told us to live simple lives. We don't want to draw attention to ourselves by spending lavishly."

"So, how can you explain sending me to Stanford?"

"They helped us set up a scholarship foundation," Claire said. "It was one of our conditions for entering the program. Congratulations," she added dramatically, "You got a full ride!"

"Oh." Paige didn't know what to make of it all. "So when were you going to tell me all this?"

"We figured that you'd ask about it sooner or later," Nick said, pinching Paige's arm. "And, if you didn't, your mother and I could give ourselves scholarships for a one-year educational around-the-world cruise!"

"So, Stanford!" Claire was was enthusiastic, wanting to match her daughter's excitement for the school that she was interested in.

Paige just shrugged.

Nick got a whiff of what was going on. "They've always been a powerhouse in swimming!"

Paige just shrugged.

"You want to go call Emily right now, don't you?" Paige looked up with a shy smile, neither nodding or shaking her head. "Go ahead! We'll clean up!"

Paige kissed her mom and her dad before she sped off to her room. After she left, Nick grabbed Claire's hand, smiling. They had been forced to give Paige so much bad news since the whole ordeal started. It really felt good to be able to deliver some happy news to their only child.


	20. Good news Good night

Emily was in bed, but not asleep, when she got Paige's text. She wasn't really tired; more frustrated. She and Paige had something that Emily had never really had before; something that felt like an unexpected gift. She hadn't been looking for love when Paige breezed into her life. But as pleasant a surprise as it was, unless they could get college sorted out, their love story would be a single, sweet chapter rather than a complete novel.

 **TriciaB: Are you up for a walk?**

Emily really didn't feel like getting up, but Paige had sent a dozen hearts and smileys with her text, so Emily knew that she was excited about something. She didn't feel like getting dressed, so she didn't. She just pulled on one of her dad's old, oversized sweatshirts from West Point, gray, with "ARMY" in black letters across the front, and grabbed a snapback for her hair. When Paige texted her that she was outside, she walked softly down the stairs. She wasn't exactly sneaking out, but her mom didn't need to know that she was going out dressed the way that she was.

"Hi, Em… Whoa!" Paige unabashedly grabbed an eyeful of Emily's legs, bare from just about the half-way point of her thigh, where the sweatshirt hit.

"Hi," Emily said with a small wave, resisting the urge to yawn.

"Emily, you didn't have to come down! You could've told me that you were in bed."

"I wasn't asleep." Paige raised an eyebrow in disbelief. "I missed you," Emily explained.

"I just saw you this afternoon," Paige pointed out with a light laugh.

" _So_?" Emily pouted. "You didn't miss me?"

"Of course I did, Em."

Emily stepped across the threshold, hugging herself against the cold, and leaned up to give Paige a kiss. "Come on, let's go."

"Emily, you don't even have any shoes on!" Paige noticed this when Emily had to get up on her toes to kiss her.

Emily shrugged. "So?" She was shifting her legs back and forth rapidly, trying to keep the blood circulating so that they would stay warm. Her arms were crossed around her waist, with her hands hiding inside the cuffs of her dad's sweatshirt.

"So, it's cold out! Your feet will freeze once we hit the sidewalk."

"I'm okay. If they get cold, I can just ride on top of your shoes." She spun Paige around and got in front of her, climbing on top of Paige's boots. Paige held her around the waist to keep her from falling.

"I don't think that this is going to work…"

"Of course it's going to work!" Emily squealed, smiling, as she started to slip and Paige pulled her tighter. "I used to do it with my Dad all the time!"

"And how old were you?"

"Fine – I'll go get some shoes."

Paige grabbed Emily's arm to keep her from retreating into the house. "Can we just sit here?" Paige said, lowering herself into a sitting position on Emily's front steps. Emily sat on Paige's lap, needing a barrier between her bare legs and the cold, wooden steps. When she sat, the sweatshirt rode up a bit higher on her thighs. She took Paige's hand and rubbed it quickly back and forth over her thighs, to keep them warm. Once Paige picked up the motion on her own, Emily released her hand and unzipped Paige's hoodie, leaning against Paige's chest and cocooning herself within the cotton fabric to retain their body heat.

"So, what did you want to talk to me about?"

"I have no idea," Paige said honestly.

"Tricia!" Emily whined, and Paige snapped out of her trance. She told Emily the good news about college, and Emily gasped in delight. "Tricia! That's terrific!" She gave Paige a kiss, and it pushed Paige over the edge. Having Emily cuddled so close, the steady movement of her hand up and down Emily's bare thighs, and Emily's child-like enthusiasm was more than anyone could handle. As much as she wanted to sit there and enjoy the good news and the moment that they were sharing, she knew that things would get out of hand very quickly if she didn't get going. She let out a deep sigh, and Emily knew what it meant.

As Paige tried to stand, Emily moved against her, not letting her get move. "Paige…" Hearing Emily call her by her original name caused Paige's will to crumble. "Could you just... stay with me tonight?" Emily knew that what she was asking was impossible, but she continued. "I'm not talking about sleeping together. I just want to be with you." She looked into Paige's eyes and saw the uncertainty. Paige didn't think that she could trust herself. "I'll put on some non-sexy, flannel pajamas," she pleaded. "I have a pair that you can wear." Paige opened her mouth to speak, but Emily continued. "Do your parents know that left the house?" Paige nodded her head. Emily sighed. The disappointment in her sigh made Paige want to make it work.

"I guess… if we fell asleep on your couch – right out in the open – it wouldn't look as if we were sneaking around, and we could play it off as if we just accidentally fell asleep." Emily smiled and squeezed Paige's body. "But you've got to get some clothes on!" Paige added quickly.

Emily stood up and sleepily stretched her arms above her head, not thinking what that movement would do to her sweatshirt. She looked down at Paige, embarrassed. Even though it was nothing more than Paige had seen when the two of them swam together, Emily knew that it wasn't the same at all. When she saw the wide-eyed look of desire on Paige's face, though, her embarrassment disappeared. She reached for Paige's hands and pulled her up from the stairs and into a kiss. Paige's hands found their way underneath the sweatshirt. When she found those hands squeezing Emily's ass, Paige worried that she had gone too far. Emily responded with a deep moan, and she deepened the kiss. "We can't do this on my front stoop," Emily said, and she took Paige by the wrist, leading her inside the house. She looked back at Paige with a smile, excited and somewhat surprised that they were actually going to give Paige's scheme a try.

* * *

Emily motioned to Paige to sit on the couch and headed up to her bedroom. She pulled on the jeans that she had worn earlier and stopped by her mom's room, to let her know that Paige had stopped by, and that they were going to hang out on the couch for a bit. Pam nodded and told her not to stay up too late.

Emily worried that her mom would come to check on them later - and kick Paige out - but she knew that she had to let her mom know that Paige was there. If her mom found them asleep on the couch in the morning, Emily could pretend that it was an accident, but Pam would want to know what Paige was doing there in the first place, without Pam's knowledge or permission.

Paige was sitting on the couch, drumming her fingers against her knees, while she waited for Emily to come down. When she heard Emily trot down the stairs, she stood up, her body reacting automatically in anticipation. Emily gave her a deep kiss before she pushed her down onto the couch. Paige giggled as her back hit the cushions. Emily had taken her cap off, and Paige felt Emily's long hair against her cheeks before she felt her lips against her own. As the kiss progressed, Paige sat up, so that she could caress Emily's back. Emily sat in Paige's lap, stretching her feet behind Paige's while Paige's feet rested on the floor. She grew impatient with the layer of cotton between her body and Paige's hands, so she took them and moved them underneath the sweatshirt. Paige's eyes widened when she realized that she didn't feel a bra strap. When Paige's hands froze, Emily glanced at her and read the thoughts that she was struggling with. Without breaking the kiss, she nodded an impatient "Go ahead," and Paige, understanding, moved her hands around to the front. Emily's lips broke away as she moaned in ecstasy and relief. _Finally!_ It wasn't that Emily was dissatisfied with the pace of the progression of their relationship. But she had needed Paige's touch for so long.

When Emily broke the kiss, Paige moved her lips down to Emily's neck, careful not to leave any marks on the column of golden skin or the collar bone beneath it. Emily had the fingers of her left hand in Paige's hair, and Paige moved her own left hand to support Emily's head, which was now fully thrown back.

"You guys okay down there?" Pam's voice was coming from her bedroom, but Emily knew that it wouldn't take much to get her to come down and check on them - and send Paige home. She mouthed the word, "sorry" to Paige as she sat up slowly, so as not to make any sort of noise that would give away the fact that they had abruptly stopped what they were doing when they heard Pam's voice.

Emily yelled "Huh?" up the stairs, as if she hadn't heard, and she put her hand on Paige's chest, signaling her not to giggle.

"Are you guys okay?" Pam repeated, a little louder.

"Oh. Yeah. Sorry - just listening to music!" Emily shrugged at Paige and stood slightly, retrieving a Nano from her back pocket.

Pam shook her head and smiled to herself at the cover story, but she didn't push it. She had made her point. She was pretty sure that she wouldn't be hearing any more music coming out of the girls for the rest of Paige's visit.

* * *

Paige lay back on the couch and extended her arms for Emily to join her. There wasn't much room for the two of them, so Paige pulled Emily close, ensuring that she wouldn't fall off onto the floor. Emily turned around in Paige's arms, bunching up the collar of Paige's T-shirt in her fists as she gave Paige a good-night kiss. Paige leaned forward, continuing the kiss, as Emily started to pull away. They were both a little breathless when they finally pulled apart. Paige swiped her thumb over Emily's lips, and Emily hummed agreeably as those lips pulsed to life under the soft but rough feel of Paige's skin. "I love you," she whispered.

Paige gave her another kiss. "I love you, too."

Emily rolled over and scooted back closer to Paige. Paige rubbed Emily's upper arm a couple of times before pulling her hair aside and kissing her earlobe.

As Emily was about to drift off to sleep, she felt Paige's stomach vibrating in silent laughter behind her. She craned her head up. "What's so funny?"

"What are you guys doing down there?" Paige whispered in a voice that was supposed to represent Pam, but sounded more like the Cookie Monster.

Emily reached back and squeezed Paige's shoulder, laughing along with her. Not that it was particularly funny, but it was a shared experience, and she was nuzzled in, ready to fall asleep in the arms of the woman she loved, and life was perfect, and she just felt like laughing. Why _not_ laugh?


	21. Waking up together

Emily woke up early the next morning with a crick in her neck. It took her a moment to realize why she felt so uncomfortable, and, when it hit her, she jerked her head up in a panic, fearing that she was alone on the couch. When she realized that she was still feeling the expanding and contracting of Paige's chest against her back, she relaxed, stroking the arms that encircled her waist as if to prove to herself that they were real.

Paige's arms weren't the only thing around Emily. She and Paige were under a very warm blanket, as well. Emily realized that her mother must have come to check on them, as she feared might happen, but, amazingly, her mother had apparently decided that their impromptu sleepover was okay.

She felt Paige's lips move against the back of her neck, and it tickled. She spun around and kissed those lips, quickly pulling away and covering her mouth. "Sorry – my breath must taste like the monkey cage at the zoo!"

Paige slid her hands down, ultimately planting them in the back pockets of Emily's jeans. She squeezed, pulling Emily closer, and kissed her again. "I don't care what it tastes like," she asserted, her early morning voice even huskier than usual. "Just kiss me."

Emily did, and then leaned back with a sigh, her head almost dangling off of the couch. "You realize what we have to do now, right?" Paige nodded, and Emily sprang from the couch. "Oh, crap, Tricia! What time is it?" Paige stifled a giggle. "Tricia! Get up! We fell asleep!" Emily widened her eyes at Paige, silently commanding her to play along, but Paige wasn't biting. Even though she was able to lead a secret life, she wasn't all that good at this kind of improvisational theater. Emily had to carry the load all by herself. "My Mom's going to kill me! _Your_ mom's going to kill me!"

They heard the sound of Pam Fields' feet hitting the floor and shuffling down the hallway upstairs. Then, they heard her voice, and Paige leapt from the couch, standing at attention. "Relax, you two. I called Christy when I saw that you guys had fallen asleep on the couch, so, she knows where you are, Tricia."

"I'm so sorry, Mom!"

"It's all right, Emmy. Just, next time, ask, okay?" Emily and Paige both nodded. "And only one of you on the couch." They nodded again, but, this time, Paige kept her head down, trying to hide the involuntary smile and blush that had appeared on her face.

Pam gathered her robe around her and slowly made her way downstairs. "Do you drink coffee, Tricia?" Paige nodded. Emily elbowed her in the ribs, trying to get her to open her mouth. She still hadn't said a word to Pam – or to Emily, for that matter, ever since Pam appeared at the top of the stairs.

"I'll make the coffee, Mom," Emily volunteered. "And Tricia and I can make breakfast. You just relax."

"Well, that would be lovely, girls. Thank you." Pam fished a pair of reading glasses out of the pocket of her robe and grabbed her laptop, opening it in her lap as she sat in the loveseat and checked for mail from her husband. Wayne had been called back to Texas. It would be another two weeks before he was able to return for Christmas.

* * *

Emily and Paige were still love-drunk from their first overnight together. The kitchen seemed too small; - they kept having to bump one another out of the way. Any excuse for physical interaction. As Paige stirred a bowl of egg whites on the counter, Emily reached over her shoulder to grab some plates from the cabinet. She rested her arm on Paige's side, and her body pressed against Paige's as she extended her arm and reached for the plate. Paige let out a moan of contentment and tilted her neck back, smiling at Emily. Emily gave Paige's side a squeeze, causing her to shriek out a giggle and jerk her body away, almost making Emily drop the plates.

"Sorry," Emily said, stroking Paige's cheek. She hadn't meant to tickle her girlfriend. She was just enjoying the experience of being together.

Paige closed her eyes and sighed at the contact of Emily's hand on her face. "Can you imagine how great it would be to do this every day? At college, I mean," she added quickly. She wasn't talking about moving in with Emily.

"Roommates?" Emily said, smiling uncontrollably.

"Yeah," Paige said wistfully. She leaned in and kissed her, and, afterwards, let her stare linger, her hand still resting on the back of Emily's neck. "All right," she said after a few moments. "The eggs are ready to go. What's next?"

* * *

Pam heard the two of them buzzing around in the kitchen, giggling and whispering. She couldn't help remembering when she was young and in love, and cooking _for_ someone, rather than _with_ someone. She sighed at that thought. This wasn't what she had envisioned for her daughter – or for herself, as a mother. But, she realized that it was what she had always wished for Emily. Every mother wants her child to be happy and to find love.

Pam remembered the night when she stumbled on Emily and Maya together. It was a horrible scene. She was crying. Emily was crying. Maya was defiant. When Wayne came home, Pam couldn't believe that he wasn't as upset by the news as she was.

It was the questions that Emily asked her, through tears, that changed Pam's perspective. "Mom, why can't I be allowed love? Doesn't everybody deserve a chance to find someone whom she truly loves? Isn't that what you always said that you wanted for me? We're all just trying to figure out our way through this world and try to find a little happiness, and it's hard enough as it is. So, if I manage to find some tiny shred of happiness, couldn't you just be happy with me?"

Pam didn't know whether or not Paige was the one. She didn't know how long she and Emily would last. But she knew that Paige made her daughter happy. And she knew that what Emily had told her was true: It's hard to find that person - whoever it may be - with whom you can truly be yourself and truly be happy, but everyone deserves a chance at that.

* * *

"So, what are you girls doing today?"

Emily looked at Paige. "Looking at colleges?"

Pam nodded, taking another bite of her toast. "And, what colleges are you thinking about, Patricia?"

"Well, I've always had a dream of going to Stanford." Paige snuck a knowing look over at Emily.

Pam looked at Emily, too, but her expression was confused, not knowing. Turning back to Paige, she asked, in a soft, apologetic voice, "It's kind of an expensive school, though, isn't it?"

Emily turned to Paige with a sad smile. "I told my Mom about the scholarship thing."

Paige nodded and took a moment to consider her words. Emily's parents had been briefed on Paige's family's situation, so Paige knew that she could give Pam the good news.

When Paige told Pam about the reward and the scholarship fund, Pam dropped her fork and took Paige's face in her hands. "Oh, Honey, that's terrific!" Paige just smiled awkwardly. "So, you and Emmy could go to college together, room together?" The pitch of Pam's voice was getting higher and squeakier with every word that she spoke. It seemed that she was more excited about this prospect than Paige and Emily themselves were.

"Well, I don't know about that," Paige said. "Emily will probably be living in the athletic dorms."

Pam exhaled. "But still, my baby won't have to go off to California all by herself!"

"That's if I get in, Mom."

"And if I get in," Paige echoed. Each one was confident that the other had what it took to get into Stanford, but less confident about her own prospects.

"Ugh! You, with the brains, and you, with the swimming? Stanford should consider themselves lucky that you're even interested!"

* * *

When they had finished eating and talking, Pam stood up. "Well, girls, it's been fun. Thank you for the lovely breakfast. I'm going to grab a shower and get dressed." She reached for her plate, but Emily intercepted her.

"Relax, Mom," she told her. "We've got this?"

"Well, I could definitely get used to this!" Pam made her way up to the stairs before she turned around and reminded them, "But, next time, remember: You ask before Tricia stays over."

* * *

"So, what do you know about Stanford?" Emily asked as she passed Paige a plate to stack in the dishwasher.

"I know that it's an excellent school," Paige said with a smile. "A couple of my former teammates and I spent a lot of time checking it out on-line, you know. It was like our dream school."

"Shana?" Emily tried to keep her tone even, but there was always something in her voice whenever she said that name. Paige shrugged her shoulders. "It's okay to talk about your ex," Emily said softly, looking away from Paige. Everything about the way that she said it was screaming that it really wasn't okay. Emily wasn't worried about Paige's past, but she didn't like to think that Paige had spent time thinking and dreaming about going to Stanford with some other girl the way that she was now talking and dreaming with her.

"We talked about going as a team, Em. Shana was part of that, because she was one of the top swimmers on the team. But we weren't together then. It's not as if I was talking about rooming with her. Pushing the beds together."

Emily nodded. "Would it be weird if she ended up going to Stanford?"

Paige's eyes widened and she put her hand on Emily's shoulder. "I hadn't even thought of that!" Paige's mood changed. "I guess I need to have a talk with my caseworkers," she mumbled with a sad sigh.

Emily actually hadn't thought about that, either. She was only thinking that it would be awkward for Paige to be around her ex again, now that she and Emily were together. The fact that it might blow Paige's cover and put her family in danger hadn't even occurred to her.

Paige saw the look in Emily's eyes and tried to calm her. "I'm not sure that any of them were really Stanford-caliber, anyway. And, besides, I'm sure that they all figured out why my family suddenly disappeared." Paige shrugged. "I'll just have to talk to my caseworkers. There's got to be some solution."

* * *

There _were_ solutions, but they weren't very palatable. Even though it was likely that Paige's old friends had figured out that her family was under federal protection, they didn't know any of the details. If they reunited with her, they would know her new name and, eventually, where the family was living. The more people who knew that level of detail, the harder it would be to ensure that the wrong people didn't find out.

The caseworkers would have to work closely with the office of admissions at whatever school Paige chose. If any of her old classmates enrolled in the same university as Paige, they would have to do their best to isolate her from them. Paige would have to live off-campus and avoid big college events such as athletic competitions and parties, and the caseworkers would have to monitor her class schedule to ensure that she wasn't enrolled in any classes with people from her old school.

Paige would have all the studying and hard work of college with none of the things that make college memorable.

Over the course of two days, Paige and Emily's college dreams had gone from low to high, only to come crashing down again.


	22. Christmas

Paige and Emily were walking slowly along the snow-covered path of a trail just outside Rosewood. Emily was especially clingy, holding on to Paige's bicep with both arms, her head resting, mute, on Paige's shoulder. It wasn't the cold that had her huddled so close.

Christmas was a bittersweet time for Emily. She loved the season and all its trimmings, but the coming of Christmas meant that her father's days in Rosewood were limited. He had flown back the week before Christmas and would barely be able to ring in the new year with them before he had to go back on duty.

And Emily couldn't help thinking about the very real possibility of another long-distance relationship in her life. In all likelihood, she and Paige were going to end up in different schools in the fall.

Emily was doing her best not to think about those things, but just to enjoy the time with her girlfriend. But it was easier said than done. Emily found herself smiling and sighing in almost equal amounts. It made Paige second-guess her big idea of getting Emily away for a while. "I'm sorry, Em."

"No, it's not you." Emily forced a smile. "I'm glad that we're doing this."

"You miss him already, don't you?"

Emily looked up at Paige, nodding sadly. "It's something that I never get used to." With a slight chuckle, she added, "I remember, one year, when I was – about 6, maybe? My Mom and I made, you know those paper chains, out of construction paper and tape?" Paige nodded. "We made this big chain out of brown construction paper and chained him to the bed so that he couldn't deploy." Emily smiled at the memory, shaking her head.

"What did he do?" Paige asked eagerly. "Did he smash through the chains like the Incredible Hulk?"

"No." Emily smiled again. "He played along. He pretended that he couldn't get up, and he said, 'Oh, no! I have to get on that plane! I'm going to get demoted!"

Paige rubbed Emily's shoulder. "He's a great dad. It's a shame…" She trailed off, not wanting to sound insensitive about Wayne's career.

"Yeah," Emily said. "I mean, I'm lucky. A lot of kids don't know their fathers. Or don't want to know them. I'm lucky to have a dad like him. And I'm lucky that he came back – in one piece, and not shell-shocked." Paige nodded. Emily put her head back on Paige's shoulder. "But still," she sighed, "there's never enough time."

"Shit, I'm so sorry, Emily. You should be with _him_ right now!"

Emily put her hand on Paige's stomach. "No, Tricia. I want to be with you. I _need_ to be with you, right now." She started walking again and added, "And he and my Mom need to have some time together, too, so."

They walked along in silence for a while, and Emily apologized. "I'm sorry, Tricia. I'm not good company. I'll try to be more upbeat."

Paige stopped and took Emily's mittens in her mittens. "It's all right, Emily. You're allowed to be sad. You can be whatever you need to be with me."

"I just need to be _with_ you," Emily said.

* * *

A little while later, Emily picked her head up when Paige stopped at a fork in the trail. Emily wasn't surprised that they had wandered so far from the main trail. Paige hadn't been in Rosewood very long, and Emily wasn't really paying attention to where they were walking. Emily tugged Paige toward the path on the right. "I think that this way leads back to town." She knew that it did, but she didn't want to say so, and show Paige up.

Paige held her ground, her arm snapping Emily's back as Emily continued walked toward the path back to town. "Let's go this way for a bit," she suggested, tilting her head toward the other path.

She hadn't stopped because she was lost. She had just been rethinking her decision to surprise Emily, when Emily was feeling so down.

They walked a few yards farther, down to a clearing that overlooked undeveloped tree barrens below. Emily had been to the spot many times before, but with the snow covering the trees, the view was more spectacular than usual. "Whoa!" she said, running toward the overlook. She looked around and found a stick, which she tossed like a boomerang into the grove of trees, sending snow cascading down from the top of the tree that the stick hit. She clapped her mittens together in delight as the displaced snow made a satisfying thump upon landing on the snow-covered ground.

Emily turned back to see Paige digging around under a clump of snow. Puzzled, she walked over to her, hands on hips, to see what was going on. Paige stood, having dug out her backpack. She dusted off the snow and positioned Emily back at the spot where she had been looking at the trees. Once she had Emily in just the right spot, she retrieved an object wrapped in tan butcher paper and handed it over. Emily was equal parts delighted and confused.

She ripped off the butcher paper, which Paige took from her, unveiling a small painting in an oval frame. Paige took a couple of paces back and took a picture of the scene as Emily studied the painting – two young lovers resting on a snow bank, the one with her head in the other's lap. It had the look of a Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood painting; dim and moody. Only when Paige showed Emily the picture that she had just taken on her phone did it occur to her that the background in the painting was the exact background of snow-covered trees that Paige had framed her against. When she took a closer look at the painting, she realized that the lovers in the picture were the two of them; - Paige with her head in Emily's lap.

Emily's face lit up with delight. "When… How… Patricia! I didn't know that you could paint!"

"I can't," Paige admitted readily. "I had it done on-line. There's a place where you can send photos and they'll incorporate them into paintings."

Emily furrowed her brow. There hadn't been a lot of snow this season. "They must work pretty fast," she observed.

"No, not really. I had to get a photo of this place in the snow from Aria. I'm just lucky that we got that big storm this week, so the scene matches the painting."

Emily hugged Paige around the neck, as well as she could through their bulky cold-weather gear, and holding the painting away from their bodies to keep it from getting damaged. "Tricia, it's perfect!"

"Just like you," Paige said. It was cheesy, but she meant it. She couldn't resist saying it.

"I was going to give you your gift tomorrow night, when you come over."

"I know," Paige said, "I just wanted to give you the picture out here, in the setting, since we got the snow. But I'm going to wrap it properly and give it to you tomorrow…" Paige reached for the painting, but Emily clutched it to her chest.

"No!"

Paige laughed. "Emily, it's one day. Just slightly more than twenty-four hours."

Emily shook her head. "I don't want to spend a day without it." The truth was that Emily wanted something to cling to, as overcome as she was with thoughts of her father's imminent departure. Paige couldn't stay the night with her, so a picture of Paige would have to do.

Paige put her hands up in surrender. Emily smiled and hugged her again. "And the way that you gave it to me was perfect – _just like you_!" She added the last phrase quickly, before Paige could beat her to it.

* * *

Emily opened the door to greet Paige and her parents Christmas evening. She ushered them inside and gave Paige a long hug. It hadn't been long since they'd seen each other, but Emily had really missed her. All morning long, she kept finding herself looking over to her side, as if expecting to be able to share those special moments with Paige.

Of course, Emily was glad for the time with her parents. But it felt as if something was missing, without Paige there.

Emily hung up her guests' coats and led them to the living room, setting a tray of Christmas goodies in front of them and offering them some hot apple cider. Emily smiled at Paige before she turned to the kitchen to serve up the cider. Paige eagerly offered to help and caught up with Emily, leaving the adults to engage in small talk around the fireplace.

Safely in the kitchen, Emily turned to face Paige and put her hands behind her neck, pulling her in for a long, lazy kiss. Paige smiled as they pulled apart. "I missed you," Emily said, and Paige agreed.

"Is that a new sweater?"

Emily nodded. "Hanna got it for me," she explained. "Do you like it?"

Paige rubbed her hands over the soft fabric at Emily's waist. She nodded her head. The sweater was soft and it curved where Emily's body did. The color really popped against Emily's skin tone. Paige _really_ liked it - just as Hanna had predicted. The card that came with the sweater said, "Wear this the next time you see Tricia. It'll drive her crazy."

Paige's crazed lips were back on Emily's. Emily melted into the kiss for a moment, but she put her hand on Paige's chest to back her away. "We need to stop," she advised, "before they send out a search party." Surely enough, Pam, who hadn't heard the rattling of cups coming from the kitchen, called out, "Did you guys get lost or something?"

Wayne, smiling deviously, patted his wife's knee. "Oh, let them have a moment, Pam!" he said genially.

Everything was in the oven or the refrigerator, so there was nothing to do but relax and enjoy each other's company until the timers went off. Pam took Claire on a tour of the house, while Nick and Wayne tried to figure out how to fix the Eagles, who were just a coach and a quarterback away from a Super Bowl victory. The same as it was every other year that Wayne had followed the team.

At the sight of Emily's ribbons, medals, and trophies in the den, Claire got emotional, putting her arm on Pam's shoulder for support. They still had all of Paige's awards, of course, but they were no longer able to display them so proudly. "It's the little things," she explained to Pam, "the things that you don't think about until they're taken away from you."

Soon, the timers started going off, and there was a frenzy of activity to get everything onto the table. Before long, everyone was settled in front of a full plate of food, and not long after that, Wayne Fields stood up, put his hand on Nick's shoulder, and announced, "Well, Nick, since the ladies worked so hard on this meal, what do you say we men get it all cleaned up?"

"I've never been one to shy away from doing my share of the work," Nick avowed, rising. Paige and Emily got up to help, but Wayne waved them off. He, too, had been young, once. He knew that his daughter and Nick's needed some time for themselves. He did, however, remind Emily, with a stern look, about keeping the door open. Because he, too, had been young, once.

When Emily got up to her room, she pushed the door as far closed as she could while still keeping it technically open. Not that she and Paige would try anything with all four of their parents downstairs. But they were entitled to a little bit of privacy.

They sat on the bed, Emily with her legs folded in front of her, Paige with one leg folded under and the other extended to the floor. They were facing each other, with their hands on each other's shoulders, as they kissed. Emily stroked Paige's cheek. "Can I give you your gift?" Paige's eyes widened and she nodded in anticipation.

Emily retrieved a small rectangular box from beneath her pillow and sat, her hands folded in her lap, smiling eagerly as she watched Paige open it.

Paige's mouth went wide when she saw the tennis bracelet. Emily scooted closer, to help her put it on. "Emily! It's beautiful!"

"Do you like it?" Emily asked demurely.

"It's incredible," Paige said. "But this is way too much!"

Emily shrugged. "It wasn't too much." she paused, adding, "I wanted to."

"Thank you," Paige said with a kiss.

"You don't really wear jewelry like that, though," Emily said, backtracking.

"I'll wear _this_ ," Paige assured her, holding her wrist up so that she could see the bracelet sparkle in the dimly lit room. "This is for special dates with my girlfriend!" She hugged Emily and whispered, "I really love it, Em."

Emily stood up and held out her hands to Paige, to help her to her feet. They walked over to the window seat, where Emily leaned against the wall and welcomed Paige into her lap. "You're the best Christmas present," Emily said, kissing Paige on the cheek. "Just promise that you'll be my Christmas future."

Paige tilted her head up, smiling. "I promise," Paige assured her. "I can't think of a better future."

* * *

"What are you and your dad doing tomorrow?" Paige's voice was a sleepy whisper as she half-reclined in Emily's lap, idly stroking Emily's arms as they encircled her waist, occasionally leaving kisses on Emily's shoulder.

"We're going into the city. We'll probably go ice skating in front of City Hall and walk around the Christmas Village and Love Park."

" 'Love Park?' " Paige sat up a little, twisting her body as she asked.

"You know, because that famous LOVE sculpture is there."

"Sounds like fun."

"Yeah, you and I definitely need to do that sometime."

Paige nodded and settled back into her spot in Emily's lap.

"How about you? Are you doing anything?"

"Going shopping with your mom." Emily laughed. "She didn't tell you?"

"No, she didn't," Emily said sarcastically, letting Paige know that she wasn't that gullible.

"I just thought, you know - it's got to be hard for her, too, with your dad going back to Texas, and even though she's happy for you to have a day with him, she might not want to be alone."

"Tricia." Paige looked up and saw skepticism on Emily's face. "Are you telling me the truth?"

Paige dipped her head, feeling nerdy for volunteering to hang out with her girlfriend's mother. "Well, yeah, I mean, you know..."

Emily lifted Paige's chin, bending down to give her a Spiderman kiss. "You're adorable, do you know that?"


	23. Date my Mom

Emily was smiling, straining to keep up with her father's deliberate pace as they navigated the narrow, crowded sidewalks of Center City Philadelphia. She was smiling because she remembered walking with her father when she was a child, holding his hand tight and feeling almost as if her feet were going to lift off the sidewalk, so swiftly was he pulling her along. It was a different way experience than walking with her mother, when they took their time and paused to look in windows or just to enjoy watching people pass by.

Her father's swift pace and the way that he pressed on, in fluid motion, despite the crowds around him, was not unlike Emily's movement through the water, when she was swimming in meets. Emily enjoyed those moments when she noted a connection with her father; picking up something that, perhaps, she got from his genes. People always told her how much she resembled her mother - something that she was proud of - but she enjoyed seeing the ways in which she was like her father, too. Even though she didn't see him as often as she would have liked, he was a best friend as well as a father, and she treasured their time together.

* * *

Paige didn't start to get nervous about spending the day with Pam until she pulled into the driveway in front of Emily's house. It was ridiculous, she thought with a chuckle - first-date jitters for going shopping with her girlfriend's mother. She laughed to herself as she picked at her hair in the rear view mirror and breathed into her hand to check her breath. She didn't want to show up at the front door chewing gum, but she wasn't confident in the results of the breath-check. Fortunately, she was about 20 minutes early; more than enough time for a quick, breath-cleansing chew.

Paige spent a few minutes flipping through radio stations trying to find something that Pam might like. In the end, she decided just to turn it off.

Paige remained in the car with her hands in her lap and the heat on, laughing at herself. It wasn't as though she'd never spent time with Emily's mother before. But they had never had any one-on-one time. And they were in for a _lot_ of one-on-one time.

* * *

The city had changed a great deal over the years - new buildings had sprung up; familiar stores and landmarks had been torn down - but most of the memories from her childhood were still there. In much the same way, Wayne Fields had changed - physically, emotionally, relationally - since Emily's childhood, but in many ways, he was still the same. Their conversation was fluid and unforced. They never missed a beat.

As they did every trip to Philly, they waited their turn to take a selfie under the Love sculpture. It was an addition to the montage; a chronicle of how they had grown - taller, broader, more wrinkled, more mature - with the passing years.

In her mind, Emily foresaw the day when it would be Paige - and, she dared to dream - some little ones, too, with her taking pictures around the sculpture. It was premature, she knew; way too early in her relationship for her to be thinking like that. But, then again, she thought, why not?

* * *

Paige was laughing. It wasn't the nervous laughter, anymore - the one that she kept falling into as she waited in the car earlier that morning. She was laughing with Pam Fields. It was the comfortable laughter of enjoying someone's company. Plus, Pam was a crack-up, and, since Paige hadn't really seen that side of her before, she was caught off guard and laughing out loud.

When they stopped for a bite of lunch, though, Pam turned serious. "You know, my Emmy..." she paused and thought it over. "I guess she's your Emmy, too?"

"Em," Paige replied. She wouldn't feel right taking the name "Emmy" from Pam and Wayne.

"Well, either way… You know that she's worried. About college."

Paige sighed. "I'm worried, too," she admitted to Pam. She would never admit it Pam's daughter.

"What are you going to do?"

"I'm going to do what you're doing, Pam. I'm going to encourage her to make the best decision for _her_ future. And, if I have to, I'm going to let her go." Pam took Paige's hand. She knew that Paige loved her daughter. And she knew that love sometimes meant letting go. "Don't get me wrong," Paige continued, looking Pam in the eyes. "I'm not talking about breaking up with Emily. I'm talking about letting her go for a season." Paige took a breath. "Because I'm confident that we're going to be together when all the dust settles."

* * *

Emily and Wayne found a seat at Scoop de Ville. Wayne liked to tease his daughter about eating ice cream in the dead of winter. She took it in stride. She rarely ate ice cream, with her training regimen, and the ice cream at Scoop de Ville was an even rarer treat. But it was more than just the ice cream. It was the tradition; the ritual - Wayne walking past the store as if he weren't going to stop; Emily tugging his sleeve and pleading with her eyes; Wayne asking why she would want ice cream on a cold day, wagging his finger in her face and telling her not to complain about being cold later. Emily invariably shuddered once they got outside again. "I'm freezing!"

"I warned you!"

Emily wanted Paige to experience the joy of Scoop de Ville: The old-timey candy, the infinite combination of flavors and blends. She wondered whether or not Paige had ever been there, secretly hoping that she hadn't. Not that she wanted to deny Paige that joy. She just wanted to be there for Paige's first time.

Emily realized that something was different about this trip. She was enjoying the time that she got to spend with her father as much or more than she had every other year. But, this year, she kept finding herself thinking about someone else.

"Did you and Tricia ever come to this place?"

"Dad... We don't have to talk about Tricia."

Wayne laughed. "We don't have to avoid talking about her! I'm not jealous of your girlfriend, Emmy." Wayne put his arm around his daughter's shoulder. "Your mother and I always wanted the day to come when you found someone whom you can give your heart to. No pressure," he said, giving Emily a squeeze. "I'm not saying that she's the one. But I know how you feel about her, and... well, I just don't want you to worry if growing closer to Tricia means growing beyond your Mom and me. Because that's what every parent wants - and hates at the same time. We want to see our children spread their wings." He turned to his daughter with a wink. "Just don't fly too far from the nest."

"Dad," Emily said softly, "did you and Mom ever think that... it would be a woman whom I flew away with?"

Wayne shrugged his broad shoulders. "I guess, for me, I knew that it was a possibility. That doesn't mean that I wasn't shocked when you first told us."

"And now?"

Wayne took his arm off of Emily's shoulder and tucked his hands in the pocket of his coat. "Tricia's a great girl, Emmy."

"I wonder how she and Mom are getting along."

"Did you want to text her?"

Emily smiled at her father and shook her head. "I don't want her to think that I'm checking up on her."

* * *

"May I ask you… something personal?"

Pam's face was scrunched up, as if she were trying to be non-threatening. Paige sat up a little straighter, with no conscious thought behind the move, sensing that this was going to be something heavy. "Of course," she said, with only a hint of misgiving in her voice.

"How did…" Pam exhaled. "When did you realize… that you like girls?"

Paige laughed out of relief. Pam felt guilty for asking. "You don't have to answer if you don't want to. I know that it's personal."

"Oh, no… Pam." "Mrs. Fields" felt more appropriate to the moment, but Paige knew that calling her that would send the wrong signal, as if she were being formal out of protest to the question. "If we had just met, or if you disapproved of Emily and me, that might be too personal. But, it comes from honest curiosity, and curiosity is valid."

Pam nodded. She seemed to have Emily's shyness for the first time all day. "It's just that I could never ask Emmy that question. You know how it is with mothers and daughters." Pam rolled her eyes, and her voice got deeper. "She would get defensive, I would get offended, and the claws would come out. She would think that I'm challenging her feelings or, I don't know – that I had some grand strategy to prove that she could love guys, too…"

Paige shook her head with a reassuring smile. "No, no. I understand." She chuckled before she could give an answer. "I think I forgot the question…"

"When did you first realize that you had feelings for girls?"

Paige nodded slowly, curling her brow in thought. "I guess, the best way that I could explain it would be to ask you, when did you first realize that you had feelings for guys?"

Pam couldn't help smiling at the tactic. If they were arguing over what was natural, she could understand it. She supposed that it was just Paige's way to tell her that the question wasn't valid.

"Because, correct me if I'm wrong, but when you were in elementary, I'm guessing that boys were gross – they smelled bad, they had bad manners – cooties even…" Pam leaned her head back. She could see where Paige was going with this. "And then, all of a sudden, you realized that boys weren't so bad after all. They started to look attractive to you, and you got shy around them." Paige shrugged. "And, that's pretty much how it happened to me. I wasn't expecting to start liking boys or girls. I just started to realize, when I saw someone attractive, that it wasn't just admiration or envy; that it made me feel a certain way."

"Uh huh." Pam nodded. "I get it." She leaned in with the devilish smile that Paige hadn't seen before that morning and said, "So, do you know the difference between lust and envy?"

Paige, smiling in anticipation, shook her head.

"Lust is, 'I _want_ your body.' Envy is, 'I want _your_ body!'"

And the heaviness was gone. Jokester Pam was back.

* * *

After a long day and a lot of walking in Philadelphia, Emily and Wayne boarded the train home. The train's heater must have been set to "tropical," and it served to make Wayne even more sleepy. Emily wasn't too disappointed when he nodded off. She had wanted to find out how Paige's day with Pam had gone, but she didn't want to be texting the entire time that she was with her dad.

Emily wasn't surprised when Paige texted that she had no idea that Pam was so funny. She was glad that her mom showed Paige that side of her.

 **TriciaB: ur mom wants 2 know how ur dad's doing.**

Emily laughed to herself and texted a shot of Wayne sleeping next to her, looking like a giant teddy bear. When Paige showed Pam, Pam grabbed the phone from her hands, raising her hand to her own cheek as she said, "Oh, my husband... He's so cute when he's sleeping." Paige thought that this cuteness while sleeping must've run in the family. Emily looked especially peaceful and angelic while she slept. But Paige held her tongue. Even though she and Pam were now buds, she didn't think that this was the kind of thing that Pam wanted to hear from her high school daughter's girlfriend.

Paige called Emily, putting her phone on speaker so that Pam could say hello, too. It had been a great day, hanging out with Pam and getting to know her on a different level. Paige had begun to feel a sense of family in a way that she hadn't felt since her family left Nebraska.

* * *

Emily nudged her father when the train got to their stop, and he shuffled into the aisle and off of the train. She offered to drive back to Rosewood, and he didn't put up an argument. They picked up burgers on the way home, which they shared, along with a few laughs, with Pam and Paige before Paige had to head home.


	24. Spence's Persistence

Spencer pulled off her glasses and rubbed her temples, letting out a grunt in frustration. She rubbed her palms in circles over her eyes and then slid them down to her cheeks, leaving them there, tugging her eyes open even wider as she stared at the screen, which was growing fuzzy as her eyes grew more and more fatigued.

She had the constant feeling that she was just one or two searches away from uncovering the truth about Tricia Bradshaw, but every door that she opened only seemed to lead into a hallway with another dozen closed doors to explore. It was a bit like being in a YouTube loop – each video leading to a list of a dozen other videos that she might like.

Spencer had been trying image searches. She had very little to work with, since the Bradshaws shied away from social media. She didn't know Paige's parents very well, so the only pictures that were available to her were the handful that Paige and their three best friends passed around among themselves.

And they yielded nothing. No reasonable hits. It was uncanny. It screamed "Purge," but Spencer had no proof.

As she reached for her glasses, she noticed a link at the bottom of the page, just within her peripheral vision: "Click to improve this search." On a whim, she clicked it.

The click led to a page with the header "SIMILAR SEARCHES." There were several rows of placeholders for pictures underneath the header, but all of the pictures were broken links. Spencer clicked on the pictures, and got an error that the domain couldn't be resolved. But the links didn't lead to domain names; they were just IP addresses. A little research turned up the fact that the addresses originated from servers in and around Lincoln Nebraska.

Spencer returned to the "SIMILAR SEARCHES" page. She noticed that the searches had been executed at the same time of day, every day for a month, which was as far back as the page of similar searches went. She guessed that someone was doing a daily search for images of Paige, generating fake IP addresses or using anonymous servers, so that the image that was used to search disappeared once the search was complete.

She reached for her phone. It was early in the morning, and the call went to voice-mail after a few rings. Spencer called again. And again. The phone was ringing, not going immediately to voice-mail, so it had to be turned on. Spencer knew that, if she kept dialing the number, the ringing would be annoying enough to get an answer. Surely enough, after about the fifth call, she heard a drowsy voice pick up.

"Spencer, yes, you left your notes here, but you'll have to wait till the morning. I'm not going to…"

"Paige!"

Paige snapped wide awake. If this had happened a few months ago, as sleepy as Paige was, she probably wouldn't have noticed that Spencer called her by her original name. But, a few months into the new identity, being called by that name was so rare that it stood out. Paige was immediately on guard.

"What's going on, Spencer?"

"Who's trying to find you?"

"What do you mean?"

"Someone in Nebraska is doing image searches for you on a daily basis."

"What?" Paige was only slightly shocked. Her caseworkers had told her to assume that this was the case, but she had a hard time believing that the bad guys were so doggedly vindictive.

"I've been doing some image searches, and I found a log with a month's worth of similar searches. Someone's looking for you."

"Why were you searching for pictures of me?" Paige knew about Spencer's misgivings, but Spencer didn't know that Paige knew.

"Does that really matter?"

"Okay, Spencer. I told you. That guy my Dad pissed off – he's relentless."

"Well, how come your picture doesn't show up anywhere on the internet? How is that possible?"

Paige took a deep breath. "Okay, look, Spencer. I may not have told you the whole truth."

Spencer smiled with the satisfaction of having been proved right.

"We didn't run out of town to avoid the politician. The fact is, he paid my dad off to leave. To disappear. To fall off the face of the earth. And, I guess he had the resources and connections to make that happen."

Paige knew that she couldn't let Spencer in on the real story – not without consulting her caseworkers, first. And Kim and Andy seemed to think that it would be good to have Spencer continue searching, to give them some insight into what, if anything, the bad guys were finding.

"Why didn't you just tell us that from the beginning?"

"Because it's embarrassing," Paige whined. "You'd like to think that your dad can't be bought. That he wouldn't sell out his honor." Paige was doing her best to sound bitter. It was hard for her to make her dad seem so mercenary, when, in fact, they were on the run precisely because he had turned down bribes.

"Oh. I see." Spencer still had her doubts. She decided to confront Paige head-on. "And what was the name of this politician?"

"Spencer… I… I've said too much already." Paige knew that Spencer had to have picked up on the way that her voice cracked at the obvious lie. She had to throw Spencer a bone. "Besides, I'm sure that you'll be able uncover that piece of information on your own."

 _Aha! A challenge!_ Spencer knew that she was up to the task. "Count on it, Bradshaw!"

The two shared a laugh, and Paige, sounding embarrassed, asked, "Spencer, you won't tell Emily, will you?"

"You haven't told her?"

Paige sighed into the phone.

"Well, I've told you about her trust issues, Tricia. I won't break your trust, but you really need to tell her."

"I know, Spencer."

"She won't care about what your family did as much as she'll care about the fact that you were lying to her."

"I know. I know."

"And the longer you leave that lie out there…"

Spencer let it hang. Paige knew what her point was. "The worse it will be when I finally tell the truth, I know."

"Tricia, I'm not just telling you this because I care about her. I'm telling you because I care about you – the two of you. She loves you, and she trusts you. Don't make her lose that trust."

"I appreciate that, Spencer. And, you're right. I can't keep lying to Emily."

* * *

As soon as Paige got off the phone with Spencer, she called Kim. Kim had no problem being awakened in the early hours of the morning by a call from her client. She thanked Paige for filling her in, in a timely fashion. "We're not surprised, or too concerned, about the fact that they're looking for you. Don't worry. They won't find anything. We're very good."

Paige nodded. Kim asked whether Spencer had said anything else, and Paige filled her in on the rest of the conversation.

"Okay," Kim said, hearing that Paige had challenged Spencer to find the name of the politician. "That should keep her busy for a while. We might even be able to throw some red herrings her way. Have you told your parents any of this?"

"I didn't want to wake them," Paige explained. "I'll tell them in the morning."

"Okay. That's fine. Thanks, Tricia. You did the right thing in calling right away."

"Okay."

"Get some rest."

* * *

When Paige got up that morning, she texted Emily, asking to meet her before her shift. Even though Spencer wouldn't betray Paige's trust, she would expect Paige to tell Emily, and that probably meant that Spencer would try, in subtle ways, to let Emily know that she was in on the secret, too. So, Paige had to brief Emily on this new cover story. If not, Emily might get the wrong idea from Spencer's hints, and inadvertently give up some information that Spencer didn't have.

The two were on the couch in the break room, where, technically, Paige wasn't allowed to be. The room was for employees only, but Zach was more than happy to make an exception for his best and most reliable employee. It didn't hurt that her friends and their dates were constantly there, helping to keep the place afloat with their business.

Paige had her head in Emily's lap as she lay atop the disgusting, mustard-yellow vinyl cushions of the couch that squealed whenever either of them made a move. The break room reeked of past lunches, stale deodorant, and air freshener. But there was something even thicker in the air.

"I really hate lying, Emily. I hate to think that this is what I've become."

Emily, who had been combing her fingers through her Paige's hair, moved her hand onto Paige's cheek and left it there.

"I don't want you to think that I'm not an honest person. Shit. Let's face it, I've done nothing but lie ever since I got to Rosewood."

"I understand," Emily said, drawing out the last syllable.

"Do you? I mean, it's great that you understand, but do you still trust me?"

"With my life," Emily said, leaning in to give Paige a tender kiss. "Tricia, you have to do whatever you can to keep yourself safe. And your family. And me. That doesn't make you a liar. Not in my books."

"I just want you to know that I won't lie to you, Emily. Not again. I wouldn't do anything to put what we have at risk."

"I know." Emily lifted Paige up and they shared a hug. Paige pulled her in tighter and tighter before she laid her head back in Emily's lap.

"I wish we could've met under different circumstances." Paige's frustration found its voice in a thought that had often run through her head.

"I know." Emily was languidly running her fingers through Paige's hair again. "I mean, don't get me wrong. I love Tricia Bradshaw, but I really wish I could've gotten to know Paige McCullers." Paige opened her eyes and smiled. "I would love to be able to swim with you on the Sharks."

"Mmm."

"And be able to post pictures with my hot girlfriend."

Paige sighed, turning onto her side, away from Emily, in sadness and frustration. "I'm sorry."

Emily tilted Paige's head a little. "I didn't mean it like that, Paige."

"I know, Em." Paige nuzzled into Emily's hand and exhaled deeply. "You know," she said with a slight chuckle, "sometimes I think that I'm going to wake up back in Nebraska and find out that all of this was nothing more than a bad dream." Emily hummed sympathetically. "Only one problem." Paige rolled over, looking up at Emily again. "If this is a dream," Paige said, moving her hand to Emily's neck, "then I never want to wake up." Emily smiled. That smile never failed to overwhelm Paige. "Although…"

Emily's expression turned to one of concern. Paige just left that "Although" hanging, and Emily didn't know what was coming next. "What?" she asked gently.

"Sometimes, it's hard for me to believe that this _isn't_ a dream. That someone as perfect as you actually exists in the real world. And that I actually get to be with you."

Emily cradled Paige's head close to her chest. As sweet as what Paige had just said was, Emily couldn't help feeling regret that she hadn't actually gotten to _be_ with Paige, yet.

Paige heard the beating of Emily's heart and knew that it was real. Emily was real. What they had was real. Whatever the world threw at them, no one could take that moment away from them. And Paige knew that she would move Heaven and Earth to ensure that nothing came between her and a lifetime of moments like that with Emily.


	25. Frustration

"So, you guys have never..."

"Nope."

"How?"

 _How?_

"What do you mean, 'how?' "

"I mean _how?_ Like, how is that even possible?"

Emily let out a frustrated groan. "I don't _know,_ Aria!"

"Not even after your birthday surprise?"

"Nope! Went to her place, sat on her parents' couch."

"But she's slept over?"

"Yep! On the couch! Fully clothed. I actually put on _more_ clothes before we fell asleep together!"

"But what about..." Emily shut down the question with a sharp glare.

"Aria. If we had slept together, trust me: I'd remember it."

"Is she a virgin?" Emily shrugged her shoulders. "You never asked her?" Emily shook her head. "I bet you Hanna knows."

Emily rolled her eyes. "I bet she does," she said, half-smiling.

"Do you guys ever talk about it?" Emily was confused. _Did she and Hanna talk about Paige's virginity?_ Aria saw the look on her face and clarified, "Do you ever talk about having sex?"

Emily sighed. "Sort of. I mean, we just tease each other about it, you know? And we've done stuff. Nothing serious. We always stop. We've never actually talked about whether or not we're ready. We just... stop." Emily knifed her hand through the air on that last word.

"Huh..." Aria looked as if she were talking to someone who had never used indoor plumbing, trying to figure out how anyone could live like that for very long.

Emily grunted in frustration. "God. It's just so... But it's not as though we have a lot of opportunities. I can't just go over to her place, the way that you guys can with your boyfriends. She still lives with her parents; I still live with my parents." Aria rubbed Emily's shoulder sympathetically. "What should I do?" Emily whined

"I don't think that I can tell you what you should do. You both need to know that you want it, and you both need to know that you're ready."

"Well, what would _you_ do?"

Aria shrugged. "I'd seduce her," she said, matter-of-factly.

"Okay, but _practically._ " Even if Emily were to seduce Paige, they would still need a location. Emily wasn't really up for groping around in the back seat of her Toyota - or the back seat of Paige's mom's Focus - for their first time.

"Just think," Aria said. "Next fall, you guys will be in Stanford, and location won't be a problem anymore!"

"Yeah," Emily said sadly. "If we make it there."

"Emily, you're a shoo-in! And Tricia's a genius - she won't have any problem getting in!"

Emily explained to Aria that Paige was afraid of running into someone from her old school who might recognize her and maybe post something on-line that all of her friends back home would see. It would be hard to keep the news from the vindictive politician.

"Whoa. So, she's just... not going to college?"

Emily shrugged. "She's going to college. She just doesn't want to risk going to a place like Stanford, you know. All of her friends from the swim team wanted to go there."

Aria nodded. "Well, do yourself a favor - don't tell Spencer about this. Tell her that Paige didn't get accepted or something." Emily raised an eyebrow in confusion. "She's already on this crusade to prove that Tricia's up to something. The last thing that she needs is more cause for suspicion."

Emily shook her head. "Jeez. Still?"

Aria nodded. "You know Spence. She won't let up until she finds something."

Emily sighed. Everything had to be so complicated. Always.

Aria's eyes got wide and she slapped her hands against her knees. "What about Hanna's place?"

"Hanna's place?"

"Yeah - her mom's never there. And Hanna could stay over at Caleb's. If she's not already planning to."

Emily smiled, thinking that Aria's plan might actually work.

"Would your mom be okay with you sleeping over at Hanna's, when her mom's not there?"

And, there it was. The complication. "Yeah. Not to mention Tricia's mom." Aria nodded sadly and the two of them sat silently, trying to come up with a solution.

Finally, Emily sighed. "I guess," she said, "I'll just invite Tricia over for a Netflix night. Her mom knows my Mom, so she'll let her stay over. And I can just tell my Mom that I'm watching movies at Hanna's, because her mom's out of town, and she doesn't want to be alone in that house all night."

"Do you think that she'll buy that?"

Emily shrugged. "Can you come up with something better?"

"I don't know, Em. It just seems that, the more complicated these plans are, the more chances there are that something will go wrong."

Emily nodded. But, unable to think of anything better, she figured she was going to have to take that chance.

* * *

"So, how are you going to _get_ her?" Hanna asked, her eyes as wide as the smile that was stretched across her face.

This was the problem with asking Hanna for help. She would want to have all of the details.

Emily tried to play it cool, hoping that, if she acted blasé about it, Hanna would, too. "I'm going to do what Paige told me that _she_ would do," Emily said. "Wining, dining, dancing, romancing, singing… she couldn't come up with a word to rhyme with 'singing.'" Emily laughed, and Hanna joined her.

"Does she have ID?"

"I'll have to find that out."

"Yeah – 'cause if she doesn't, you'll be _whining_ and dining! You see what I did there?"

"Whatever, Hanna. You're sure that your mom's going to be away this weekend?"

"She's locked and loaded!"

"And you're…"

"Bunking with Caleb," Hanna droned, her tone heavy, rebuking Emily for feeling the need to ask.

"Great! I'll get Paige to ask her parents to let her sleep over with me, for a Netflix night. Then, we'll just come here!"

"Why can't you just tell Paige that you're coming here?"

"It's called _romance_ , Hanna. I'm not just going to say, 'Hey – you want to go out on Friday, then go over to Hanna's and do it?"

"That's what _I_ would do. Damn – dating women must be hard!"

"Yeah. I'm sure that Caleb would agree. Anyway, I'm not sure that she's even ready to take it to the next level. So, I'm going to have to play it by ear. If I'm not getting the signals, then we actually _will_ have to come back to my place."

"Your mom's cool with her staying over?"

Emily shrugged. "I'll just have to find a minute alone so that I can text her and let her know that Paige is coming."

"You think that she might not be ready? Because she's a _virgin_?" Hanna whispered the word as though she were saying something dirty.

"Hanna! I don't even know whether or not she's a virgin!"

"You want me to ask her?"  
Emily glared at Hanna.  
"What? She knows that _I'm_ not a virgin!"

"Hanna, everybody knows that you're not a virgin."  
Hanna glared at Emily.  
"Not like that. I just mean that you're not shy about telling people about all of your… escapades."

Hanna shook off her offense. She sidled up to Emily and asked her, in a playful voice, "So, when you two are going at it like mad dogs on my bed, what name are you going to scream out? Paige, or Tricia?"

* * *

Paige and Emily were doing homework on Emily's bed when Emily reached over and took the earbud out of Paige's ear. Paige took the other one out, smiling at Emily, who was smiling back nervously. "Hey," she said.

"Hey," Emily said back. She exhaled, fighting off her nervousness. Paige just lay there, smiling patiently. Emily took her hand, to feel connected. "Do you want to, maybe, do something Friday night?" Emily was nervously fiddling with Paige's fingers.

"Sure, Em! I'm always up for doing something! What did you have in mind?" Paige knew that Emily must have had something in mind. Otherwise, Emily wouldn't have asked her so formally (and so nervously), because they always did something together on Friday nights, unless Emily had a meet or an early practice on Saturday.

Emily shrugged. "I thought that it might be fun to go dancing."

"Dancing, huh?" Paige could see how nervous Emily was, so she didn't string it out. "We should do it! It would definitely be fun."

"Yeah?" Emily smiled, biting the corner of her lip. "And I could take you out to dinner first? Someplace nice?"

"Dinner and dancing!" Paige gave an enthusiastic thumbs up.

"And, maybe, since I don't have practice in the morning, we could have a movie marathon? You could stay over? – If you wanted. And if your parents are okay with it. My Mom will be here, so…"

Emily was rambling. Paige sat up and pulled Emily into a sitting position. She gave her a big kiss. "Is it my birthday again so soon?"

Emily relaxed a little, seeing how eager Paige was for their date. "Okay, great. I'll make some reservations – do you have ID?"

Paige sighed. That was going to be a problem. "That's a little bit tricky, you know, with… everything. You don't know which of these places you can trust, you know? They might put your image on the web, or even sell it to someone else to use as a fake ID. That was one of the things that my caseworker warned me about. I still think that my Dad paid her off to say it…"

"Oh." Emily rubbed Paige's shoulder sympathetically. "Well, if you're okay with it, if you give Caleb your driver's license, he can whip one up for you? He would do it all himself, so you wouldn't have to take it to a place."

Paige's grin got bigger. "That would be perfect!"

* * *

"Ladies... Come right in," Caleb said, opening the door to his apartment and ushering them in. He looked as if he had missed at least a couple of nights' sleep, and at least as many shaves. He quickly pushed some dirty laundry off of the couch, onto the floor, and gestured for Paige and Emily to sit down.

Paige reached for her driver's license and handed it to Caleb before she sat down. She smiled as she took in the layout of his studio apartment. It looked something like the Bat Cave, if Alfred had been on vacation for a month. And if Batman was addicted to Five Hour Energy.

Caleb put Paige's license onto a scanner, and an array of monitors around his desk lit up with her image. With a quick series of clicks, he subtracted a couple of years from the date and tilted a monitor toward Paige for her approval. "Do you want me to change the lighting or the angle on the picture at all?" Paige declined. "No, of course not," Caleb said. "You're beautiful just the way you are!" He reached over to push a button on the front panel of what looked like a printer on steroids. It beeped an complained, and Caleb let loose with a few choice words, clicking away the error boxes that came up on his main monitor. He fished through the bottom drawer of his desk, smiling as he found a white plastic tube full of colored powder which he fed into one of the ink cartridges before he fired up the printer again. In a short while, a plastic sheet came out, and Caleb took it over to a cutter to trim it down to size.

"Wow! You do great work! And fast! You could put the real DMV out of business!" Paige showed Emily her new ID, despite the fact that it wasn't any different than her old one, except for the date.

Emily hugged Caleb, so Paige did, too, even though he didn't seem all that comfortable with the contact. Emily turned to Paige and jumped slightly, with her hands on Paige's shoulders, as she let out a squeal of delight. She squeezed Paige's hand tight, full of nervous energy as they headed to the car. It was on: All systems go for their big date.


	26. The Seduction of Tricia Bradshaw

Emily got dressed at Hanna's house and left her overnight bag there. She didn't want Paige to see the bag and figure out that they weren't going back to Emily's house. She didn't want Paige to feel pressured, if she wasn't ready.

Emily wore a curve-hugging burgundy dress that featured her legs and gave her a strategic lift in other key areas. Her hair was up, with a single strand descending on each side. She had begged off early from practice to fit in a mani-pedi. Hanna personally did her make-up. Standing behind her in the mirror, with her hands on Emily's shoulders as they reviewed the total package, Hanna whispered into her ear, "That girl's not going to stand a chance!"

Emily wore a long coat in the car. Ordinarily, she would have kept the coat in the back seat and put it on when she got out, but she didn't want to run the risk of having Paige's parents peek out in the driveway, see her in that dress, and get the wrong idea. Which, to be honest, would have been the right idea. The dress was made for impressing a date. The date's parents would definitely not be impressed.

Emily parked around the corner and waited for Paige to text her and let her know that she was ready. The last thing that Emily needed was to show up early and have Nick McCullers say, "Tricia will be a couple of minutes. Have a seat. I'll take your coat!"

* * *

"I'll get it!" Paige yelled, running down the steps when the doorbell rang, to guarantee that she was the first one to lay eyes on Emily. She led Emily to the family room, where she greeted Claire and Nick, doing her best to make it look as if she weren't in a hurry. After a few pleasantries, they set off.

Taking her cue from what Paige had done when she took Emily to dinner, Emily opened the passenger door and helped Paige inside. Paige was surprised when Emily pulled over as soon as they rounded the corner. "I just want to put my coat in the back," she explained.

Paige watched in the rear view mirror as Emily folded her coat and bent over to lay it across the back seat. Her dress was backless, and Paige followed the motion of every vertebra in Emily's spine, on display from her shoulders to where the dress ended in a "V," just above her hips. Paige whistled under her breath. Her legs started to get bouncy.

Hanna was right. Paige didn't stand a chance.

"God, Emily, that dress is just…" Paige was at a loss for words. Emily bit the corner of her lips and stroked Paige's thigh, taking an extra moment to enjoy the feel of satin in Paige's black slacks.

Emily's dress was definitely not made for driving. It kept riding up whenever Emily shifted her foot between the gas and the brake. At every stoplight, Emily had to lift up out of the seat a little and deftly pull the hem back into place.

Paige's eyes were drawn to the region every time the hem edged up or down. She was trying her best not to stare – or, at least, not to be so blatant, but she failed on both counts. It didn't help that Emily's thigh was prominently displayed every time that she flexed it to push down on the brake pedal. Out of the corner of her eye, Emily caught Paige every time she stared, and she smirked with delight at the effect she was having on her girlfriend. _Let the seduction begin._

Emily removed her hand from Paige's thigh to reach for the volume on the satellite radio. "Ooh, I love this song," she said, cranking up the Siriusly Sinatra station as Frankie began singing "They Can't Take That Away From Me." Paige smiled as Emily tried to sing along, although she really didn't know many of the words between "The way" and "They can't take that away from me."

Emily swiped her index finger down Paige's cheek as Frank sang, "The way you sing off key," and Paige said, "Hey!" in mock protest of Emily's commentary on Paige's karaoke fail. But, for the most part, the song had Paige thinking of what had been going through her mind a few days earlier, when she and Emily were reclining on the couch in the break room at The Brew: What they had was real, and nothing could take it away from them.

It wasn't long before Paige joined in on each refrain, "They can't take that away from me."

Emily pressed her hand to Paige's cheek, smiling irrepressibly, as the song ended. Paige twisted her lips to the side, trying to reach Emily's palm with a kiss. Emily dropped her arm down, resting it Paige's black satin slacks, and squeezed her knee twice as she assured her that they didn't have much farther to drive. Paige's thighs were both tense, and, feeling that under her forearm, Emily moved her hand back to Paige's cheek. "Are you okay?" The tenderness in Emily's voice only made Paige's legs clench even more.

* * *

Things simmered down to a slow burn over dinner. The wine helped. They only had a couple of glasses; just enough to calm them down. They wanted to be able to remember this night. Emily never wanted to forget Paige's eyes lit by a flickering candle, the sound of her voice as they talked about nothing in particular, the tensing of her calf when Emily stroked her bare foot against it underneath the table.

Paige kept getting lost in Emily's eyes, smiling with admiration each time that it happened. Once or twice, when their eyes locked, it became intense; breathtaking. Undeniably sexual. Those times, all that Paige could do was clear her throat, pat her lips with her napkin, and dip her head. The last time that it happened, Emily reached for Paige's hand and squeezed it, not letting go as her stare grew even more intense and pointed. Paige didn't pick up on the question that Emily's eyes were asking, but the implications of that unexpressed question had her heart beating out of her chest and the temperature rising between her legs. Paige shifted uncomfortably in her seat and crossed her ankles. She took a sip from her glass and idly fanned her face with her hand. Emily was completely undoing her with a simple stare.

* * *

The chill in the night air was refreshing as they walked from the restaurant to a club that Caleb had recommended. It was loud, pulsating, and up-tempo; a preview of what was to come later that night. Emily didn't know whether or not Paige could dance. It didn't take long for her to find out. Hanna was one of the few girls who could keep up with Emily on the dance floor, but Paige matched her step for step. During the fast songs, she showcased how limber and responsive her body was. The slow songs were out of this world.

Paige held Emily's left hand and her waist. Emily had a hand on Paige's shoulder. Their dancing wasn't explicit, but it was intimate. Paige's grip kept getting tighter and tighter around Emily's waist as the night went on. Emily felt as if she was melting into Paige. It may have been her imagination, but she was sure that she could feel the hardness of Paige's nipples through their clothes.

Emily didn't realize that she was purring softly until Paige responded with a quiet moan. Emily lifted her head from Paige's shoulder and looked up apologetically. When she did, she caught a glimpse of the unmistakable desire in Paige's eyes.

The night had been just too perfect.

"What are you thinking?" Emily asked with a devilish smile, as if she didn't know.

"I'm thinking, I sure hope that Pam Fields is a heavy sleeper!"

Emily laughed at the unexpectedness of that response, and slapped Paige's chest. "I'm sorry," Paige said with a smile that told Emily that she really wasn't.

Emily let go of Paige's hand and put both of her hands on Paige's chest, her fingers toying with Paige's hair at the shoulder line. Paige linked her fingers behind Emily's back as they continued to sway with the music. "Well, what if I told you that we're not going to my house tonight?"

"No?" Paige was confused, but she could tell by the smile on Emily's face that this was good news.

Emily shook her head no. "We're going to spend the night at Hanna's. We'll have the whole" (Emily drew out that word) "house to ourselves!"

Paige let that news sink in for a split second before she kissed Emily. It was a celebratory kiss, with no other motives behind it, but when their lips connected, it was as if the final switch had been flipped to complete the launch sequence. Emily could feel the heat rising from her center, slowly making its way up from her stomach to her neck and down to her fingers and toes, setting each extremity ablaze.

They finished out the song before Emily took Paige's hand and spun around, tilting her head toward the exit with a warm smile. She led Paige through the crowd, turning back a couple of times to confirm that the smile on her girlfriend's face was as big as the one on her own. Paige had the look of a child who had just been awakened on Christmas morning and was being led towards the stockings and the tree. Inside, she was taking a slightly panicked inventory of what she was wearing underneath, what she had packed for the sleepover, and where she had shaved. She knew that Emily was going to look flawless; first of all, because she was _Emily_ , but also because Emily had known all along how the evening was going to end

In the end, Paige reassured herself that she would be just fine. She decided that their night was going to be perfect.

* * *

The ride home was silent and, for the most part, relaxing. Emily, wanting to make sure that Paige was truly okay with sleeping over at Hanna's, reached out her hand to touch Paige's cheek. Paige took Emily's hand and gave her palm a kiss before she placed it in her lap, squeezing it gently. It was a chaste maneuver, but it allowed Emily to feel the heat radiating there, confirming to her that she and Paige were in agreement. Emily resisted the urge to move her hand up closer to the source of the heat and get the party started early. They had no reason to rush.

* * *

The nerves didn't start until they were actually inside Hanna's house, standing awkwardly, silent, inside the door, wondering how to transition from playful teasing to completely connected. Emily let down her hair and took off her heels, her hand on Paige's shoulder to support herself as she took them off.

"So."

"So."

Silence.

"I'm gonna go get…" Emily tilted her head toward the stairs and took off. She turned back after a couple of steps and gave Paige a quick kiss, on her way to drape her coat over a chair in the entryway. The kiss helped Paige to relax a little, but it didn't make things any less awkward. She stood like a statue, watching Emily bounce up the stairs, admiring the ebb and flow on display in Emily's dress, before she finally realized that she should get upstairs, too.

* * *

Paige found her way to Hanna's bedroom and sat nervously on Hanna's bed, drumming her fingers against her knees. She stood up to get undressed a couple of times, but sat down again each time, fearing that it might not be appropriate.

In the bathroom, Emily was trying to convince herself that she didn't have to be nervous. She tried several smiles in the mirror, but none looked natural. She said, "Hi, Tricia" several times, and, each time, it sounded forced. She cursed Hanna for putting the thought in her head about what she should call Paige during sex.

After a bit, Emily slapped her hands on the counter and resolved to leave her fears behind her. She leaned against the door and took a few deep breaths before she opened it and headed to Hanna's bedroom.

When Emily crossed the threshold, Paige stood up, nervously wiping her hands on her slacks. Emily took one look at her and felt exposed, wearing next to nothing while Paige was still fully clothed. Before her brain had time to wonder whether or not she had been reading the evening incorrectly, she was wearing Paige, who had closed the distance between them at vampire speed. It took Emily a second to catch up to what was going on: Their tongues were tasting each other, Paige's hands were caressing every bit of exposed skin at the back of Emily, and she was riding Paige's thigh.

When they broke from the kiss, Paige took a step back, looked Emily up and down, and said, "Wow," softly. Emily responded with a smile, putting her hands on Paige's shoulders and backing her over to Hanna's bed. It smelled of lavender. Emily kissed Paige as she began unbuttoning, unbuckling, and unzipping, smiling in approval as more of Paige came into view. Paige managed to get the straps of Emily's one-piece away from her shoulders and ease the garment to the floor.

Their dance became horizontal as they slowly, patiently, got to know each other's bodies; what the other one liked; how the other one tasted; what her lips felt like on various parts of the other one's body. It was impossible to tell where the appreciation ended and the lovemaking began, and at what point the lovemaking melted into sleeping, comfortably together, their bodies, like their souls, one.

* * *

On Saturday morning, as they refueled with a stack of Emily's chocolate chip pancakes, Emily smiled at Paige. "Do you want to hear something funny?"

"I would love to hear something funny."

"Hanna really wanted to know what I was going to call you when we were in bed together.

All of a sudden, it didn't seem so funny, once Emily said it out loud.

Paige tossed her head back genuine laughter. "Tell her 'Xena,'" she smirked, still giddy from the night before. "Tell her that I made you call me 'Xena!'"

* * *

 **A/N - Thanks to thecatfromaliceinwonderland, whose review a couple of chapters ago included the song that Emily turned up on the ride to the restaurant.**

 **Okay - let's dig into some guest reviewers' comments:**

 **" _Idk if you watched the pretty little liars special tonight but I'm glad that we find out Emily has been visiting Paige at Stanford!_ " I guess I should've known that PLL was on last night, because I got about a dozen story-update notifications Monday & Tuesday, and that seems to happen whenever the show comes back on TV. :) - But, Wow! I'll have to check it out. Thanks! **

**" _Please don't tell me Paige is a virgin?!_ " Hmm... I'm not sure whether or not she was before this chapter, but she's definitely not, now. :)  
**

 **"** ** _This chapter would indicate that some sexy times is coming up but since this story has a T rating I am not sure if that'll happen._ " Yeah... still clinging to that T rating. :( But, as I've always said, your imagination is way better than any sexy times that I could ever write, so there's that...**


	27. Suspension of Disbelief

**A/N - Hey, guys... I know that I've asked you to accept some pretty unrealistic happenings in my other fics, but what happens in this chapter really takes the cake. So, let's all close our eyes and imagine a universe where these things could actually take place!**

 **Sorry in advance! Thanks for playing along!**

* * *

Paige and Emily were half-reclining in the window seat in Emily's room. Emily's back was resting on the wall, and Paige's back was resting on Emily. Emily had her chin on the top of Paige's head, and their fingers were intertwined. They were silent, for the most part.

After the rush of the Christmas holidays, and the thrill of their first time together, they had settled back to reality. They would have to start getting serious about what college they were going to attend in the fall.

Paige had had it with all of the ups and downs of this situation. Whenever they got a piece of good news, it was followed by something even worse. After she found out that her parents could afford to send her to Stanford, she found out that it wouldn't be a good idea to go to a school where the members of her former team might run into her. What was a dream college for Emily could end up a nightmare for Paige.

* * *

"We could go to another college. It doesn't have to be Stanford."

"It would be the same wherever I go. Unless I go to some hick, Cowtown college that no one's ever heard of."

Paige felt Emily shrug. "Then I'll go to that hick, Cowtown college, too."

Paige tilted her head and gave Emily a sad, I-can't-believe-that-you'd-really-do-that-for-me smile. "That's insane," she said, before she lowered her head again.

"I don't want to go somewhere without you," Emily declared. She had tried so hard to get used to the idea of Stanford without Paige, when they discussed why Paige couldn't get a scholarship, but, once that problem was resolved, she let herself get her hopes up again.

"You have to go to Stanford. You have to break records."

"What about you? You should be swimming and breaking records!"

Paige just shook her head. She had been coming to terms with the new reality for a long time. She didn't want to start thinking about what could have been. "Maybe I can find a small, obscure college near Stanford."

"It's so unfair!" Emily lifted her left hand to Paige's head and ran smoothed it over Paige's hair, giving the ends a slight tug before she repeated the gesture.

"If only my Dad weren't such an honest guy," Paige scoffed sarcastically, trying her best to laugh at the statement. Emily kissed the top of her head. "We'll figure it out," Paige said reassuringly. "Let's not let it ruin our Sunday."

Paige felt Emily nod against the top of her head as Emily's arms encircled her shoulders and pulled her up and in for a hug. Paige leaned her head into Emily's bicep, and Emily, feeling the moisture of Paige's tear, squeezed her girlfriend tighter.

Paige enjoyed the moment for a while before she forced herself up, extending her hands to Emily, to help her up. "Come on," she said with resignation. "Let's get this workout in."

* * *

Emily's phone buzzed with an incoming text. Her face curved into a smile as she read the news that Sydney had blasted to the entire swim team. It simply said, "We're famous!" There was a link to a news article that the Rosewood Register had done on Coach Fulton and her winning ways. Emily pulled out her laptop and searched the paper's web site for the article. Before they bothered to read the text, they scrolled through the photo gallery. There a copy of the team photo, a shot of Coach Fulton giving a pep talk, a shot of Coach Fulton crouching by the side of the pool with her stopwatch in her hand, a shot of Coach Fulton with her arm on a freshman's shoulder, giving her advice, a shot of…

"Go back," Paige said, reaching over Emily to scroll back a couple of pictures. When she found the one of Coach Fulton giving the pep talk, she sat up straight and covered her mouth. Emily looked at her, confused. All the blood had drained from Paige's face. Emily looked at the picture again and saw why. Standing behind Coach Fulton and off to the side, barely in the picture and barely in focus was Paige. She was looking off to the side, but her profile was clearly recognizable.

Paige tried to reassure Emily. It was just a semi-obscure picture, of Paige, not her dad, in a small local paper, so it probably wasn't a crisis. Still, she had to call her father.

Nick told her to head home immediately. Alone. He called the caseworkers.

There were two black SUVs parked at an angle in the middle of the street before Paige even made it back. She had time to text a quick "I love you" to Emily before they were instructed to turn their phones off.

Unlike what had happened in Nebraska, where there was an orderly, albeit surreptitious, exit, the priority was to get the family to safety. There was no time for subtlety. They didn't have time to pack much or to make preparations. They had to assume the worst.

* * *

Emily called Hanna, who called Spencer and Aria. They were with Emily in her bedroom in no time.

Emily sat in her window seat hugging her knees, slowly shaking her head. This was the thing that she had feared the most, but had convinced herself would never happen. She was still having a hard time believing that it was really happening. She wasn't really scared for Paige. She was certain that the Federal Protective Services would be able to keep her and her family safe. She was afraid for _them_ ; for her and Paige, although she felt guilty for feeling that. And, deep down, she had to believe that Paige would find a way to contact her. They had never discussed what would happen if Paige had to move, but Emily knew that Paige would never simply let go.

 _The memory of all that, no, they can't take that away from me._ The words had a haunting irony as Sinatra's voice looped over and over in Emily's head.

Hanna was next to Emily on the window seat, gently stroking Emily's shin but facing Spencer, who was sitting on Emily's bed, and Aria, who pacing back and forth with her arms folded and her mouth wide open in shock, as Hanna recounted to them in detail the secret life of Tricia Bradshaw.

* * *

The McCullers family wasn't supposed to know where the agents were taking them. The agents didn't have to do much to hide the route from Paige. She wasn't focusing on anything during the long, circuitous journey - except on what she had lost. Claire was cradling her head as she sobbed unabashedly. Leaving Nebraska was tough, but this was immeasurably tougher. Paige had left many lifelong friends behind, but not one whom she had hoped to spend a lifetime with. And, despite what her parents told her, Paige couldn't shake the feeling that it was her fault. If she had been more careful, or if she hadn't agreed to becoming a coach on a team that was bound to make the papers, they wouldn't be on the run again.

Paige knew what was coming next. Soon, she would get yet another new identity, another backstory, another home, another school, another part of the country. She was almost numb to all of that. Trading one false identity for another wouldn't as traumatic as leaving her original identity behind. But Paige couldn't bear the thought of leaving Emily behind; the thought of Emily crying her eyes out, just as Paige herself was now doing.

 _The way you haunt my dreams, no that can't take that away from me._

Deep down, Paige knew that it wasn't over between them. She regretted not having made plans for something like this; some secret way that they could stay in contact if the unthinkable happened; some kind of bat-signal to let Emily know that she was all right, and that she would return for her.

* * *

When Hanna finished filling them in, Spencer, without thinking, yelled, "I knew it!" Both Hanna and Aria shot her disapproving glares. She ducked her head in apology. She didn't mean to gloat or to be smug. It was just the relief, after having pursued the case for so long, of knowing that her instincts hadn't been wrong.

Aria looked over at Emily to see how she had reacted to Spencer's outburst. Emily hadn't reacted at all. She was too wrapped up in her thoughts and fears to have registered that Spencer done anything. Aria walked over to the window seat and began rubbing Emily's back. When Emily looked up and gave her a half-hearted smile, Aria whispered, "She'll call you, Em. She'll find a way." Hanna squeezed Emily's knee, and Spencer nodded in agreement.

* * *

In a small, mom-and-pop motel on the outskirts of New Jersey, the agents from the Federal Protective Services gave them the rundown. They were monitoring airline and train reservations, and they were keeping watch over the Bradshaws' house in Rosewood. Agents were staying there to make the place look lived in. While they figured out what they were up against, the agency was working on new identities and a new hometown for the family.

"No," Nick said.

He and his family had discussed things. They were not going to be uprooted again. They had decided to draw a line in the sand. Nick McCullers was going to stand and fight.

Mary Shannon, the agent in charge, was well-schooled in hiding her emotions, so when Nick made his foolhardy, albeit brave, announcement, she didn't let the smile that she felt on the inside show on the outside. While the other agents fulfilled their duty and tried to convince Nick how foolhardy and unwinnable such a battle would be, she was already formulating her strategy.

"In the end, it's your decision," Shannon said, looking at the entire family, not just Nick, after the other agents had made their case.

"We've discussed it," Nick said. "We're not going to keep running for the rest of our lives. It stops here."

"Yes!" Shannon exclaimed, no longer needing to hide her enthusiasm. Once the family had made their firm decision, her deliberate show of emotion was intended to reassure them that her agents were competent, able, and willing to take down their adversaries.

* * *

The agency picked up a detachment of hit men when they hit the ground at the Philadelphia International Airport. They picked up another team when they disembarked at the 30th Street Amtrak station. In both cases, the assassins went quietly, not wanting to stir up too much attention and jeopardize the chances for the other team. By the end of the week, the ground troops showed up in non-descript sedans at the Bradshaws' house. Shannon's team took them down with only a minor scuffle, not attracting any undue attention from the neighbors.

Nick McCullers had nothing on the organization beyond the testimony that he had given in the federal trial. The fact that they came at him full-force, when he was no longer a threat to the organization, meant that it was personal; a vendetta. They also wanted to send a message to anyone else who might cross them in the future: Eventually, they would find them and kill them.

But it didn't work out that way.

Federal agents kept the organization's lieutenants on ice and started applying pressure. What little loyalty they had to their bosses didn't last long. In the end, they provided the authorities with the details that they would need for a slow but steady dismantling of the entire structure of the organization.

The good guys won. But there was more to the battle.


	28. They Can't Take That Away from Me

Emily paced back and forth on her front porch, tensing up every time that she heard a car rounding the corner. When the car that she was waiting for finally arrived, she ran out to the driveway to meet it, ripping the door open before Paige even got the engine turned off. In a flash, they were in each other's arms, holding on for dear life, unable to tell whether they were laughing or crying in relief. In fact, it was a little bit of both.

Pam watched the reunion of her daughter and her daughter's girlfriend through the living room window. The waiting had been the hardest part for both her and Emily. It had been hard on Paige, of course, but, in the middle of all the intrigue and activity, she didn't have much time to fret. For Emily, there was nothing except silence and the unknown. It was still considered too dangerous for the McCullers family to use their cell phones or to send e-mail - anything that might have been traced back to a location - until Federal Protective Services was certain that the threat had been completely neutralized.

Pam recalled the Saturday morning when there was a knock at the front door. Emily thought nothing of the cleaning service's white van with bold green letters that she saw parked in the driveway as she neared the door. Thinking nothing of it, she opened the door, prepared to say a polite "no" to the lady in white overalls who looked a bit old to be cleaning carpets door-to-door for a living. With a smile plastered across her face, the technician introduced herself and offered Emily her card. The card simply said, "They can't take that away from me." Emily's eyes went wide as she recognized Paige's handwriting. The smile gone from her face, she pulled the agent into the house.

The agent, who had used the familiar phrase to let Emily know that she was with the good guys, explained to Emily and Pam that Paige and her family were safe, but that it would be a while before they would be able to contact each other. She told them that agents had been monitoring their house discreetly, although they had no indication that the bad guys had anyway to connect Paige with Emily. She did warn Emily to be a bit more careful about whom she opened the front door for.

The agent couldn't tell them about the McCullerses' decision to stay and fight. She couldn't answer Emily's question about whether or not Paige would have to move again. When Emily, overwhelmed, stood up and turned her back to her mother and the agent, pinching the bridge of her nose between her thumb and her index finger, the agent got up and put her hand on Emily's shoulder. "It won't be very much longer," she assured her. "We want to make sure that there's a happy ending for the McCullers family - and for you and Paige."

The agent gave them a card with a number to call if they had any questions or if they saw anything suspicious. She gave Pam and Emily a hug, promising Emily that it would all be over very soon.

Looking on through the window at the fulfillment of that promise, Pam smiled to herself. She opened the door as Paige and Emily came up the stairs, hand in hand. Paige held onto Emily's hand as Pam gave her a quick hug. Pam knew that they had a lot of talking to do.

* * *

As they sank into their familiar spots in Emily's window seat, Paige told her of the family's decision to fight, of the three waves of bad guys who had come after them, and of the prayers that she offered up every night for Emily's safety. Emily held her tight. She told her how much she had missed being able to hold her, and that the thought of Paige being in danger, while she had to wait, unable to help and not knowing what was happening, had all but driven her crazy.

"I wrote you a letter," Emily said softly. She walked over to her dresser and pulled out a notebook in which she had written, almost every day, an on-going letter to Paige. Most of it was how much she missed her, and how the little things that happened reminded her of that. Some of it was the day-to-day details that she would have told Paige in person, had she been able to do so. On some pages, she worried that Paige might never see the letter; on most, she was confident that that they would be together again. The last words of the letter, recorded the night before Emily almost dropped her phone in shock when it lit up with a picture of Paige's face on an incoming phone call, were these:

I have to admit that this is a very confusing time for me, Paige. I don't know what the future holds. I don't know where I'll be next year. I don't know where you are, my love, or when we will be together again. But there is one thing that I'm certain of: Wherever life or Fate or the Universe takes us, you and I will always be together. Even if our bodies cannot be physically present together, I know that you will always be with me in my heart, just as I know that I will always have my place in your heart. How I wish that you could be next to me to tell me that in your own voice and your own words, but that's okay. You have told me that so many times, with a smile, a caress, or a kiss. I love you, Paige. **They can't take that away from me.**

But Emily asked Paige not to read the letter just yet. They had some catching up to do. She silently closed the door, not wanting to alert her mom that she was closing it, and giggled as she tiptoed, in an exaggerated motion like a cartoon villain, back over to the window seat and Paige. It felt so good to have her lips on Paige's again, to feel Paige's fingers against her skin again, and to feel Paige's skin beneath her fingers again. But just as they were beginning to reconnect, Emily heard her mother calling from the base of the stairs.

"Emmy?"

Emily groaned, swinging her head in frustration. _Couldn't she just give us a minute?_

"Yeah?"

Paige rubbed Emily's shoulder to calm her. They didn't have to do all of their catching up right at that moment. There would be time for that.

"Honey," Pam yelled up the stairs, "I'm going to go visit your Grandma in South Philly. Will you and Paige be okay getting dinner for yourselves?"

Emily smiled with her eyes opened wide toward Paige. "Yes, Mom," she said, trying her best not to squeal in excitement.

"Okay! I love you! You, too, Paige!"

Emily ran into the hall before her mom pulled away. "Thank you," she whispered.

"I'll see you tomorrow," Pam said with a wink.

* * *

The McCullers family wasn't out of the woods just yet. It would take months for the Attorney General's office to assemble a case, and even more time for them to get court dates and to prosecute the case. The appeals could go on for years. The family was still under protection when they moved back to their quiet street in Rosewood. When Paige and Emily, accompanied by their mothers, flew out to visit Stanford, a team of agents flew out with them.

Paige made the trip as an academic recruit, but Nick was able to arrange for her to get work out for Stanford's swim coach. Paige had her times from her high school in Nebraska, although they were a year old and she hadn't been practicing the way that she would have if she were still swimming competitively, with a coaching staff and trainers to monitor and assist her. Still, the coach at Stanford was optimistic about Paige's chances to make the team as a walk-on, if she worked her tail off over the summer. He couldn't offer her a scholarship, at least not in the first year, but that wasn't the point. The money from the reward would take care of that. Paige would be happy just to get back to being on a team and competing. And being teammates with Emily, of course, was a bonus.

* * *

When the day of their senior prom arrived, the special agent assigned to Paige and Emily met with them over lunch, at school. She told them that she wasn't there to be their chaperone or to be the eyes and ears of their parents. Her only concern was keeping them safe from the bad guys, as her team always referred to them. "So, don't do anything stupid like try to ditch me," she advised them, casually, but firmly. "You won't be able to, but you will, potentially, put yourselves and those close to you at risk. I want you guys to have a good time, and I'm not here to interfere with that. I'm only here to interfere with anybody who wants to put you in danger."

"And if my Dad asks you..."

"I'll tell him that he has to ask you. Our team will be meeting with your parents, too. They'll tell your parents to think of it like doctor-patient privilege. In order for you to be safe, you have to be able to trust us to respect your privacy."

Paige and Emily nodded their consent and told the agent that everyone was going to Spencer's family's cabin after the prom. That was better than a hotel, the agent assured them. Her team would be able to stake out the perimeter of the cabin, as opposed to a hotel, where they would have to post someone right outside of their door. She gave them a smirk. "And I don't think that anybody here wants that scenario."

* * *

The prom itself was like a dream. It was so much better than Emily could have imagined - especially given that both she and Paige had expected to be single at the beginning of their senior year. Not that Emily had lived in dread of the thought of being single. She was comfortable with who she was, and she enjoyed the comfort of the friends and family that surrounded her. Still, now that she had Paige in her life, it felt like placing the last piece in the puzzle.

She remembered that autumn night, where she sat with Paige by the pool, not wanting to think of the spring, because of the uncertainty and fear about what the future held. They couldn't have dreamed that things would go as well as they did. They both had secured admission to Stanford; Emily with a full scholarship, and Paige with a slot as a walk-on that was all but guaranteed in the fall. And they were going to spend a magical evening at the prom – and a magical night at the cabin.

Emily enjoyed dancing to the up-tempo songs, where she could really cut loose and enjoy herself - and laugh as Paige played off of her every move. She also enjoyed the fact that it was an experience that they were sharing with their friends, all together on the dance floor. In the back of their minds, they each knew that, after the summer, there would be very few opportunities for all of them to be together like this.

But, the slow dances, in contrast to the up-tempo songs, were just for the two of them, Paige and Emily. Paige held her so tight that it almost felt as if they were one body. Emily didn't know what she liked more: the feeling of her head on Paige's shoulder, or the feeling of Paige's head on her shoulder. She only knew that she didn't want the night to end. And that the night was only going to get better.

By the time the last song was played, their heads had come off of each other's shoulders. Paige was smiling, because she couldn't help herself, and they were kissing, because they couldn't stop themselves. Paige's eyelids narrowed as she stared deep into Emily's eyes, and Emily fell under her spell. They hadn't talked about what was going to happen later that night at the cabin, but they both knew.

And, there, on the dance floor for the last dance of the prom, the look in Paige's eyes dispelled any lingering doubt.

* * *

Back at the cabin, Paige opened the window to let a summer breeze blow through before she took a seat next to Emily on the bed. Emily was smiling as her eyes followed Paige to the window and back to her side. Paige took both of Emily's hands and returned her gaze before she eased Emily's head onto her shoulder and wrapped her arms around her.

They sat holding each other for a while, talking about the prom: The food, the music, the other couples and what they were wearing. They didn't feel rushed. They had been waiting for this moment, and they didn't want to hurry through it.

When the time to talk was over, Emily lifted her head, smiled at Paige and kissed her before she got up to take off her make up.

Paige heard water running and Emily humming to herself - one of the songs they had danced to earlier that evening.

She was disappointed by the next sound that she heard - the sound of a zipper. "I wanted to take that off of you," she complained.

The door opened and Emily appeared in lacy black peek-a-boo lingerie. "You can take this off of me," she offered seductively, biting the corner of her lip through her smile.

Paige closed the distance between them and kissed her desperately while her hands roamed freely behind Emily. There was considerably less to the lingerie behind Emily than there was in front, and it had Paige grinding and moaning desperately as they kissed. She picked Emily up, carried her to the bed, and gently laid her down.

Emily stood up immediately. "You have to take this off of me," she playfully reminded Paige. Before Paige could begin, though, Emily kissed her as she began unbuttoning Paige's shirt, her lips following her hands all the way down past every button. She was on her knees by the time she got to the kiss following the last button. Paige took her by the shoulders and gently eased her to her feet. She slipped her fingers under the straps of Emily's teddy and let it fall to the floor, unable to hide her delight at what it seemed that she were seeing for the first time.

Emily was aroused by Paige's reaction, but when she realized that Paige had stopped touching her and was just standing their staring, she pulled off Paige's bra and began squeezing and sucking her breasts. Paige awoke from her trance, bringing Emily's lips up to hers; then kissing and sucking at the column of her neck. As her hands roamed down Emily's sides and to her thighs, Emily jumped up into her arms, wrapping her legs around Paige's waist.

When Paige felt the warm moisture land against her bare belly, she went into overdrive, crashing onto the bed with Emily beneath her and trying desperately to get out of her pants. "Easy," Emily said, in a low, soothing voice that tamed the beast within her lover.

Paige let herself relax. She took a kiss from Emily, allowing it to ground her, before she began slowly and steadily caressing Emily's legs, finally settling in to the source of the moisture that had sent her over the edge in the first place. Emily moaned with satisfaction, but there was something deeper behind it. To Paige, it sounded like love, and when she heard that, she pressed her lips against Emily's ear and purred "I love you."

* * *

Over the summer, as the attorney general's office began prosecuting their case against the organization that Nick McCullers had helped bring down, the news made it back to Paige's hometown in Nebraska. The news stories mentioned the family's new names, the photograph that blew their cover, Paige's unofficial relationship with Rosewood High's swim team, and her relationship with one swimmer, in particular.

Paige's old friends and teammates tried to contact her, but she was still off the grid. It didn't take long for someone to get the bright idea of trying to reach her through her girlfriend. When Emily grew tired of being the intermediary, she insisted that Paige get on social media again.

There was an upside to this. Emily and her friends could post pictures of Paige and tag her in pictures without fear. Emily was finally able to show off her relationship - and her girlfriend - and it was liberating. It was actually beyond liberating; it was exhilarating.

And she had plenty to show off, that summer. There were day-trips to Philadelphia and weekends at the Jersey Shore, visits to water parks, hikes and camping, and, mainly just a lot of hanging out; just the two of them, them with the other couples, them with their families. It all felt so normal, and it would have been easy for either of them to take it for granted, had not the events of the preceding school year been filled with secrecy and fear.

But the summer wasn't all fun and games for Paige. Not by a long shot. There was the two-week swim camp in the Poconos, and the daily work-outs with a coach whom Nick hired. Paige felt that she earned every moment of recreation that she enjoyed that summer, but she wasn't complaining. It felt good to get back into the competitive side of swimming. Emily wasn't complaining, either. She was looking forward to Stanford with high hopes of being on the same team with Paige; with her girlfriend. They spent many evenings lounging by the pool, staring up at the summer sky and sharing their dreams of the future.

Inevitably, there were some rough patches as Paige began renewing contact with her former friends. Over the time that she was away, many had built up a resentment over the way that she had disappeared from their lives without a trace. Even though there were rumors and speculation about why she and her family had to disappear, some of her friends were only able to see things from their perspective: Paige should have trusted them; she should have found some way to reach out to them - even though any such attempt would likely have cost her father his life.

At their caseworkers' suggestion, Paige met with a therapist once a week. She needed to discover who she was, and she needed assurance that she wasn't betraying her family or her past (as some of her friends had accused her of doing) by living as Tricia Bradshaw for a little while longer. Her therapist helped her focus on becoming whole again. She pointed out that Paige was dealing with post-traumatic stress, having lived for months with the fear of death, always having to watch her back, having to deny and hide her past, and with only a few people whom she could trust. With her therapist's permission, Paige asked Emily to join her for one of the sessions, to help her understand the transition that her girlfriend was going through and how to respond constructively when, as would certainly be the case, the stress caused Paige to shut her out or lash out at her.

"Do you think that you can handle it?" Paige asked, only half joking, as they drove home.

"I told you, Bradshaw," Emily replied, her tone light, "You're not getting rid of me that easily." In a more serious tone, she added, "This might actually make us even stronger."


	29. At Stanford

Paige and Emily spent the last month of the summer at Stanford, in a swimming program for incoming freshmen. The coach reserved a spot for Paige, even though she wasn't technically on the team yet. Since they were the only two swimmers from Rosewood, she and Emily got to share a room together – a luxury that they wouldn't have during the school year. At least not at the outset. The coach wasn't able to get Paige into the athletic dorms, but he advised her that things often opened up during the year, when someone decided to take a semester off or to study abroad, for example.

* * *

As Emily dried off at the side of the pool, she watched with an intense stare at Paige, finishing up her heat. It was obvious that Paige had missed swimming competitively like this, and she was thoroughly enjoying being back in the sport. She moved like a bullet, showing the kind of passion that Emily had only seen from her in one other context – which also involved Paige being horizontal. And wet. It gave Emily a tingle to observe the feral beast that Paige transformed into even in simulated competition.

Paige still had a long way to go to get back to where she had been. But where she was was enough to light a fire in Emily's belly.

Paige ripped off her goggles, looked at her time, and pumped her fist in the air with a triumphant yell. Emily was waiting for her with a dry towel when she got out of the pool. Paige couldn't help notice the way that Emily was staring as she raised her arms to towel off her head and shoulders. She caught the way that Emily chewed her lip as a bead of slowly water traced its way down a protruding vein on Paige's bicep. Emily eventually captured the bead with her fingertip, then retraced its route back up to Paige's collarbone, giving Paige a look that was probably illegal in some states. Paige never flinched from Emily's stare as she swiped the towel behind her back and between her legs with a devious smile.

But they were still in practice, so they lined up for the next set of heats. Emily positioned herself behind Paige so that she could play grab-ass with her whenever she saw that she could get away with it, because the coach's eyes were on something else.

As excited as Paige was to be back in competitive swimming, she couldn't wait for practice to be over. The second hand on the clock seemed to be moving as slowly as the hour hand. Finally, Coach blew the whistle, and Paige and Emily fell over themselves packing their gear and heading to the locker room.

"What do you say we shower after we get back to the dorm?"

"Yeah," Paige agreed. "About an hour and a half after we get back to the dorm!"

Emily giggled. "You think that you've got that much left in the tank, Bradshaw?"

Paige just smirked. "You're about to find out."

* * *

When classes started in the fall, Paige went through the formal process to qualify as a walk-on for Stanford's swim team. After observing the progress that Paige had made in the summer, the coaching staff was overjoyed to have her. They wanted to make sure that she was happy, too, but they weren't able to find a space for her in the athletic dorms with the rest of the team. Coach Meehan pulled some strings to get her an apartment not too far from campus that was affordable enough for her to live without roommates. It was a month-to-month lease, because he was confident that she would be in the dorms before the second semester rolled around. Paige didn't mind waiting. She was happy just to have her life - and her sport - back. Having a place where she and Emily could be alone didn't hurt, either.

She and Emily settled into a routine. Paige met Emily at her dorm in the morning for practice, followed by breakfast at the training table with the team. They studied and trained together in the evenings, and Emily usually spent the weekends at Paige's apartment.

* * *

"You looked good out there, Paige!"

Emily heard those words and her blood started to boil. So, she did what she did whenever she heard Shana Fring refer to her girlfriend by that name: She squeezed Paige's hand a little tighter and leaned in a little closer, more possessively.

Paige said something back to Shana – "You, too;" "Thanks, bitch;" "Fuck off, skank." Emily wasn't sure what it was. She wasn't paying attention. She was too pissed off.

She knew that she shouldn't let it get to her, but it did.

Paige and Emily were living their dream at Stanford, but that dream didn't include a reunion with one of Paige's teammates from Nebraska. One who insisted on calling her by her original name.

When Paige's identity was out in the open again, she decided that it would be less disruptive for her to stick with her new name rather than going through all of the red tape involved in legally changing back to her original name. It wasn't an easy choice, and part of her felt disloyal to her family name - the name that she should have been (and, of course, was) so proud of, especially after her father's heroics. She had in the back of her mind that she would go back to it eventually, probably after she finished her studies.

In the meantime, her old friends kept calling her what they had always called her. And when one of those old friends turned out to be Paige's ex-girlfriend, and when she turned out to have gotten a scholarship to swim for Stanford, it got to Emily.

Every time she called Emily's girlfriend by that name, it felt like taunting: _I have 17 years of history with Paige, and I know her by her real name. You've known her for barely a year, by some name that the government assigned to her._

Every time Emily heard that name, she wanted to say, "Yes, I've only known her for a year, but I've known her in ways that you'll never know her. Do you know where to touch her to make her melt? Where to kiss her while you're giving her the most earth-shattering orgasm she's ever had? Do you know what it feels like when she's with you, completely blowing your… mind?"

But she couldn't say any of that, so, instead, she just held onto Paige tighter, like the pathetic, needy girlfriend that she felt that she was being.

The odd thing was that Emily actually preferred the name Paige. It seemed to fit the girl whom she'd only known as Tricia. Emily liked the fact that Paige wasn't an abbreviated form of anything: It stood on its own. Tricia was a name interrupted, like Paige's life, and Emily only got the second portion of it. Granted, it was the longer part, but she wanted all of it. All of _her._ All of _her Paige_.

* * *

"You always do that," Paige said with a half-smile, after Shana had crawled back into her cave under the bridge, or whatever hole she had slithered out of.

"Do what?" Emily asked with a look of innocence. She knew perfectly well what Paige was talking about, just as Paige knew perfectly well why Emily always did it. So why was Paige going to make her admit to it?

"You _know_ that she doesn't mean anything to me, Em. We were over a long time ago."

Emily grunted. She wanted to scream. This wasn't about her being jealous. This was about Shana taunting her. And, of course, Paige couldn't see it, because Paige didn't play those kind of games.

"I'll tell her to call me 'Tricia,'" Paige said in resignation.

Emily tugged on Paige's arm to stop her from walking. "No!" she said firmly. The last thing that she needed was for Paige to tell Shana, "You're going to have to stop calling me by my name, because it's making my pathetic girlfriend feel even more insecure."

Paige let out a sigh of frustration. "How do I fix this, Emily?"

Emily shrugged her shoulders. Paige kept staring at her, desperate for a solution. "Just fuck me," Emily eventually said, barely audibly, as she started walking again.

"Huh?"

"Would you just take me back to your apartment and fuck me?" Emily said, annoyed.

"Emily, I don't think…"

"Paige," Emily said, sternly. She knew that it wouldn't solve anything, but she didn't know how to solve anything. And she just needed to feel connected to Paige. Or, whatever. She just wanted Paige to fuck her. Call it being possessive; call it being desperate; call it a power play over Shana. Emily didn't care what Paige called it, as long as she got Paige inside of her. She squeezed Paige's bicep. " _Please_."

Paige closed her mouth and nodded her head. "As you wish."

Emily turned to Paige and gave her a long hug. She wanted to be sure that Paige knew that this wasn't a revenge fuck or a way to assert her position over Shana. But she also wanted Paige to know how much she needed to be with her.

* * *

The next time that Shana greeted Paige, Paige corrected her, gently and with a smile: "Actually, it's Tricia, now."

Shana, surprised, looked over at Emily. Emily, herself surprised to hear Paige say it, tried not to look smug. But she didn't look away.

"Oh... right. Sorry... _Tricia_."

To her credit, Shana never made that mistake again.

And, from that moment on, Emily started calling her girlfriend "Paige."

* * *

Paige was studying in Emily's room when Hanna popped up on facetime. As Emily took the call, Paige started packing up to head out. Hanna apologized and offered to try again later, but Paige assured her that she was just about to leave, anyway. She gave Emily a kiss good-bye, and Emily smiled as she said, "Bye, Paige" softly.

Hanna looked confused. When she heard the door close behind Paige, she giggled. "We're calling her Paige, now?"

Emily glared into the camera. "No," she said, in no uncertain terms.

"But you just..."

" _I_ am," Emily interrupted. " _We're_ not."

"Oh, okay." Hanna said, confused. It took a second to process this new information. "Ohhh! Jeez, Em! Territorial much?"

"Yes," Emily replied, a few cracks appearing in her faux-serious veneer, "especially when fucking _Shana_..."

"Whoop!" Hanna threw her hands up. "Say no more! Not getting in the middle of this L-Word drama!"

* * *

One evening, after a long night of studying in the library, Emily walked over to where Paige was sitting and gently put her hand on her shoulder. "Are you about ready to go, Paige?" she whispered.

Paige sprang up from her chair like a wild beast escaping from its cage and grabbed Emily firmly. It made Emily a little nervous, until Paige gave her a kiss - a kiss that was a bit more intimate than was appropriate for the setting. "God, I love it when you call me Paige," she husked softly before reconnecting their lips.

"Yeah?" Emily asked, pulling away from the kiss. "So, now you get why it used to bother me whenever Shana called you that?"

Paige nodded and crashed their lips together again. She ran her fingers through her hair to push it out of her face, with a look that let Emily know that she was ready. To go. _Really_ ready.

She needed to hear Emily call her Paige while she was teetering on the brink.

* * *

Paige packed her book bag and slung it over her shoulder, grabbing a tight hold of Emily's hand as they walked out into the refreshingly cool night air.

"Paige?"

Paige subconsciously squeezed Emily's hand at the sound of her original name from Emily's lips. "Yeah?"

Emily was avoiding Paige's eyes, looking down at their clasped hands. "Thanks for saying that to Shana. It meant a lot." Emily nodded her head and shot a brief glance at Paige's eyes.

Paige gave Emily a smile. "You're welcome," she said softly, adding, "It was worth it."

A few paces later, Emily, her eyes focused on their hands again, and her thoughts focused on what was about to happen once they got back to Paige's apartment, broke the silence again. "Paige?"

"Yeah?"

"I love it when you call me Em," she admitted shyly, barely above a whisper.


	30. It's a Wrap

Paige woke up confused, alone in her narrow double bed. She sat up in a panic; usually, waking up without Emily next to her meant that it was a weekday, and she was late for class. When she sat up, she caught the scent of cooking from the kitchen and relaxed, realizing where Emily was.

It was a Sunday, and the school year was winding down. The days were warming up, so Paige didn't bother to gather a robe around herself after she got up with a stretch and wandered into the kitchen.

She smiled at the sight before her: Emily in boxers and a V-neck shirt, dancing between the counter and the stove as she hummed to herself. Paige couldn't see Emily's face, but she knew that there was a smile there. She walked up behind her and put her hands on her waist. Emily tilted her head back and looked at her, with that smile that Paige was expecting. "Good morning beautiful!"

Emily turned around in Paige's arms, holding a spatula to the side as she hugged Paige with her left hand. They kissed for a moment, and as they did, Emily's toes inched their way on top of Paige's feet. As the hand wandered lower down the length of Paige's shirt, she gave her a quick smack. "Paige! Put some undies on before you come into the kitchen!"

Paige turned around, grinning, and obediently headed back to the bedroom. Emily shook her head, still smiling as she watched her walk away. She headed to the sink for a couple of squirts from the bottle of hand sanitizer before she went back to work at the stove.

Their first year at Stanford had been an unqualified success. They enjoyed success in the pool, where they excelled both in individual events and on relays, both of them having the opportunity to anchor at couple of meets.

Their courses were challenging, but nothing that they weren't able to handle. Once they established their training and study routines, things went a lot more smoothly.

As their coach had predicted, a bed opened up in the athletic dorms midway through the first semester, but, by that time, they had grown accustomed to Paige's apartment. It helped to have some time away from the team. They had plenty of opportunities to bond with the team in practice, over meals at the training table, during their road trips, and through their sorority.

Emily and Shana even developed a close friendship. The trio of freshmen, who collectively became known as "Triple Trouble," made quite a name for themselves, forming a key part of the team's success that year.

Over Spring Break, Paige and Emily joined Shana back home in Nebraska, assisting at a local swim camp where Shana had volunteered for the past two years. The camp, set up to encourage younger girls to pursue swimming, was the same one that Paige had attended when she was in elementary school.

It had been almost a year since Nick McCullers' name had begun to show up on the nightly news in Nebraska, and most of the excitement and gossip had died down by the time that Paige returned there with Emily. Emily was excited to see Paige's former school, to meet her former coach, her friends, and her extended family. Of course, everyone called her "Paige," the only name by which they had ever known her. Shana lapsed back into using the name, as well. Once Paige realized that Shana had done so, she looked at Emily apologetically. Emily smiled, rubbing Paige's stomach to let her know that it was okay. She was no longer insecure about hearing that name from Shana's lips. And she, too, had gotten caught up in the celebrity status that Paige in her hometown – not because of her father's heroics, but because of what Paige had accomplished in her three years swimming for the high school team. Emily had never felt prouder of her girlfriend.

* * *

Paige was thoroughly enjoying herself with the girls in the swim camp. It didn't surprise Emily that Paige would be make a good coach and teacher. Emily had seen that side of Paige firsthand. She was, however, surprised at how well Paige related to the girls, and eagerly they took to her. She was used to seeing to competitive side of Paige, the one who pushed their teammates to be all that they could be. Emily was used to being the one who emphasized swimming for the enjoyment of it. But in the camp, with the little ones, Paige was all about enjoyment and having fun. At the end of the first day of camp, Emily couldn't resist kissing her. When Paige asked what the kiss was for, Emily replied, "I had no idea that you were so good with kids."

"That's because she's just a big kid herself," Shana commented in passing. Emily smiled and waved it off. Inside of her, at some deep level that didn't register in her conscious mind, Emily had taken note of something new about Paige: What she would be like as a mother.

* * *

When the school year drew to a close, Paige and Emily headed back to Rosewood – back to their families and friends. It felt good to be back. So much had happened in a short nine months. There was a lot of catching up to do.

Nick McCullers was able to go back to his first love, accounting, but Claire ended up finding a new love in teaching. Although there were a lot of challenges in the classroom, and there was a lot of work to do outside of the classroom, she found it much more rewarding than her work in software. When she was teaching, she was able to see the impact that her hard work was having on her students' minds - and, in face, on their lives. She felt as if she was making an investment in the future.

Nick and Claire were grateful to be able to make trips back to Nebraska, to visit family and friends, but they had become settled in their new life in Rosewood. The big advantage of living in Rosewood was that, although many people knew about the trial and the Witness Protection Program, Nick and Claire they didn't get nearly as much attention there as they did back in Nebraska.

When Emily left for college, Pam moved to Texas to be with her husband. They were able to see Paige and Emily swim a few times, at meets in Texas and the surrounding states, as far as Arizona. Pam and Wayne both went back to Rosewood for the summer, to spend some time with Emily.

Hanna was back, down from the Fashion Institute in New York, as was Spencer, up from pre-law at Georgetown. Aria, who had remained in Rosewood with her boyfriend, followed him to Cambridge for the summer. They only saw her for the last two weeks of August, just before everyone had to head back to school.

* * *

For their final hurrah that summer, Paige and Emily rented a car and drove up to Vermont. They needed a bit off time to themselves. Nestled in bed together on a fresh summer evening, they reminisced about their lives together.

"I guess that it's true what they say: Everything happens for a reason."

"Who says that?" Emily challenged. Paige shrugged.

"I don't know. I'm trying to be philosophical, here, Em. You know, as bad as that whole situation with my Dad was, I can't imagine what my life would be like if I didn't have you in it."

Emily used her index finger to push the hair to the side of Paige's forehead, only to watch gravity tumble it back into its place for her push it aside again, pursuing her obsession with the tenacity of Sisyphus. "We would've met," she said confidently. "I mean, we would've met at Stanford, if nothing else."

"Mmmm." Paige frowned. "I wouldn't want to have had to wait another year to get to know you. I wouldn't want to have taken someone else to prom, or kissed someone else at the end of the graduation ceremony."

Emily kissed Paige. "I know, right?" She smiled deviously and added, "And I got to have a hot, mysterious girlfriend, who was leading a double life." She kissed Paige again, adding, "It was kind of nice having something that only you and I shared."

"And Hanna," Paige pointed out.

"Yeah. Hanna. Of course." Emily started giggling, and Paige looked at her, wordlessly asking what was up. "I miss calling you Patricia," Emily explained. "There were so many ways that I could go with it. Pah-Tri-Sha. Pa-Tree-Cee-Ya." Emily kept repeating the name over and over, with different accents, different inflections, and emphasizing different syllables. As much as Paige enjoyed hearing Emily having fun with her name, she pressed a kiss to Emily's lips to stop the silliness.

"You can call me anything you want," she said.

"Xena," Emily said with a laugh.

"Yes, Gabrielle." Paige smiled. "I guess that Patricia will always be a part of me."

"And of me," Emily said, tugging on a strand of Paige's hair and not letting go.

* * *

"I like kissing you," Paige admitted.

"I like it, too."

"Did you ever think that we'd end up together like this?"

"From the moment that I first saw you," Emily confessed.

"Love at first sight?"

Emily just shrugged. "I don't know. I don't know what it was." Emily's lips were treacherously close to Paige's as she spoke. "I just know that, from the moment that I first saw you, I knew that there was something special about you." Emily pouted. "You didn't feel anything?"

Paige let out a long sigh. "The truth?" Emily nodded, and Paige squeezed her hand, holding it between them as she focused her brown eyes deep into Emily's. "I never thought that I could be so lucky. I still had that victim mentality – everything in my life was going to shit, I had to leave all my friends behind, I had to hide who I was. And then, I saw you, like a shining star, but why even get my hopes up, you know?" Paige saw the look of concern on her girlfriend's face. Emily hated to think of Paige wallowing in the depths of despair like that. Paige made a point of smiling as she kissed Emily. "I guess the Universe knew what it was doing all along."

"I guess so," Emily repeated, mirroring Paige's smile. They lay still, staring into each other's eyes a while longer before Emily spoke again. "I wish that we could stay here forever."

Paige smiled wryly. "I don't." She shifted up onto her elbow. "There's so much that I want to see and do with you, Emily. There's a whole world out there for us. Right here is great, but it's just the beginning. Let's never stand still okay, Emily? We can stop to catch our breath and to enjoy the scenery from time to time, but let's always just keep moving forward."

Emily nodded enthusiastically. "There's no one whom I'd rather move through life with, Paige." Emily engulfed Paige in her arms, kissing her tenderly on the forehead, as they lapsed into peaceful dreams - some while they were asleep, many while they slept - of a life full of love and each other.

* * *

 **A/N – And so, this November tale - 30 days of Paily - has come to an end...**

 **Thanks so much to everyone who actually stuck it through to this point. Special thanks, once again, to subway20 for the prompt, and to everyone who was thoughtful enough to leave a review.**

 **Believe me when I say that I love you all.**


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